


Penumbra

by Moontune



Category: RWBY
Genre: Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Eventual Fluff, I totally didn't make up Summer's semblance last minute solely for plot convenience, Light Angst, M/M, Original Character Death(s), Original Character(s), Other, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Rating May Change, Reader is male, Reader-Insert, Slow Burn, Slow To Update
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-14
Updated: 2019-02-26
Packaged: 2019-03-04 21:07:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 29
Words: 44,341
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13373088
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Moontune/pseuds/Moontune
Summary: It wasn't a surprise that the Headmaster of Beacon took such an interest in you, despite your affiliation. Your semblance was unlike any other; it could protect humanity for years to come, or bring destruction and despair to all the people of Remnant.He simply hoped that it wasn't too late to put you on the right path.





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> This first chapter is a quick dive into the reader's backstory. It's short, so I'll try to make the next chapter longer.

The village feared you.

 

After the bandits came, you were never the same. Your innocent smile became twisted and unnerved everyone unfortunate enough to be in your presence. Your bright, shining eyes were tainted, glimmering with something far from innocence. They saw a darkness in your soul unlike anything they could imagine. Any oblivious traveler passing through would pay you no mind, but the locals knew better.

 

They knew the power you held in your newfound semblance. The thought that a young child like yourself could control the creatures of grimm was far more unsettling than the looming threat of a band of thieves. But they humoured you for the sake of keeping the village safe. Any bandits who threatened the town were swiftly disposed of by your pets. Grimm surrounded your village, no one entered or left the town without your permission. You were in control for years.

 

Until, of course, she came.

 

A powerful, white-haired woman laid waste to your village, seemingly able to render your semblance useless as the grimm you once controlled tore your home apart. No one but you was spared.

 

She promised you power unlike any other. She promised to teach you how to fight and destroy anyone who opposed you. The catch, however, was that you had to kill one specific person for her; and if you failed, your punishment would be death.

 

You accepted her offer. How could you not? It's not like she'd let you walk away freely if you refused. Even so, there was no way you could find it within yourself to turn down an offer as tempting as hers.

 

From that day forward, Salem taught you everything you needed to know.


	2. The First Step

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There was no doubt in your mind that taking Salem up on her offer was the best choice you could have made... until she assigns you to a task unlike any you had done before, that is.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter takes place a few years after your first Encounter with Salem  
> (Comments and kudos are greatly appreciated!)

Every day, you grew stronger. Every day, she put you through rigorous training exercises; between controlling powerful grimm, to fighting them alone. It wasn't long until she deemed you strong enough to send you on proper missions, albeit simple ones at first. A few stray huntsmen and huntresses who saw something they shouldn't have, or had information that she needed. Information, of course, meant the whereabouts of various maidens, who they were, what they looked like, anything about them.

 

Unfortunately, the few huntsmen and huntresses that you had interrogated gave you little to work with. They either held outdated information, or remained silently loyal until their inevitable death.

 

Despite your own loyalty to Salem, you couldn't help but question her motives. What would she do to the maidens once you found them? You highly doubted that they would ever willingly join her; and if she wanted their power alone, how would she contain it? She already made it clear that she had no intention to become the vessel of the maiden's powers; and there was no way that you, a man, would be a viable maiden. That was out of the question, of course.

 

The answers to your questions were revealed after a few months, when Salem introduced you to the young Cinder Fall. The girl couldn't be any older than you had been when you first joined Salem's faction, if not a bit younger.

 

You couldn't bring yourself to care much for her. Her cocky attitude and smug smirk only seemed to annoy you, and her pride was unlike any other huntress's you had encountered. And yet, you still saw a bit of yourself in her. Her hunger for power, the raw determination in her eyes, and her fierce drive to become stronger.

 

You might not have liked her, but you still found yourself treating her with the respect you decided she deserved.

 

With Cinder as your new partner, you continued to find what little information you could on the four maidens. Even after four months' worth of searching, there wasn't much to go on.

 

One day, however, Salem approached you two with a different task in mind.

 

"There's been rumours of a silver-eyed huntsman in Snowpeak village." Salem spoke, standing tall as she addressed you and Cinder, "I want you to find them, and assimilate their power as your own."

 

As she spoke, she placed a long white glove in your hands. The fabric was rough, and there was a distinct red symbol embroidered on the palm. You stared up into her eyes, nodding firmly as you tucked the accessory into your pocket. She then turned to Cinder, "(y/n) should have no problem taking care of this task on his own; you are to search for the fall maiden."

 

There was a moment of silence as Cinder thought about her response before speaking, obviously confused, "What about our lead on the summer maiden?"

 

Ah, yes. The two of you managed to find an up-to-date location of the summer maiden's whereabouts in Anima. You had to admit, you were quite confused as well. Why was Cinder suddenly supposed to start back at square one with another maiden that you had no information about?

 

Salem wasn't swayed in the least at her question, instead looking to the nearby set of doors. "No need to worry, Cinder. Our new associate shouldn't have any difficulty finding her."

 

The doors opened to reveal a young, lanky man with long black hair tied in a braid. His face had a wide grin, and his pupils appeared dilated. He bowed low as Salem continued, "I trust that you two will give Tyrian a warm welcome. People with his skill are rare to find."

 

Something about him struck you as odd. He seemed to occasionally twitch, and that cheshire grin never seemed to waver. Yet you paid him no mind as Salem dismissed your two associates, before speaking directly to you, and you alone.

 

"That glove contains a unique creature. It's original purpose was to drain humans of their aura and their soul, but it should suffice in transferring the genetics of the silver eyes to you. "

 

You nodded again, ready to leave only for her to speak again, "Do not underestimate the strength behind those who possess silver eyes. They're born warriors; and with enough experience, they can decimate hundreds of grimm in a matter of minutes. Do you understand?"

 

You took a deep breath as you nodded, anxiety twisting your stomach into knots. "Yes, I understand."

 

"Then I expect nothing less than success."

 

Taking that as your cue to leave, you walked through the doorway and exited her chambers. You immediately began preparing your weapon and packing minimal supplies, ready for your journey to Snowpeak Village. You couldn't seem to shake the anxiety planted in your chest for some reason. It was strange, you had never gotten this nervous about a tasking before; even when it came to torturing information out of an unfortunate soul.

 

Why did you feel like this? Why couldn't you shake the feeling of dread and apprehension? Questions swirled around your mind like a hurricane, causing a sudden sense of fear form like a lump of lead in the pit of your stomach.

 

How powerful was this huntsman? Did you even stand a chance against them? How could you ever hope to defeat someone capable of so much? Did Salem simply send you to your own death?

 

Your mind stopped at that last question. No, there's no way she'd do that. She spent so much time teaching you, training you to be stronger. There's no way she'd simply throw all that hard work away. Throw _you_ away. No, she was confident that you could handle this on your own.

 

But what if you can't win? What if you return, having failed your goal?

 

_What have you gotten yourself into?_


	3. Welcome to Snowpeak

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a few day's journey, you finally make it to your destination. Now that you've finished the easy part of your mission, it's time you look for your target.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, comments and kudos are very much appreciated!
> 
> (Thank you Salias for the wonderful comment! I would've replied earlier via comments, but I don't know how to respond to compliments;;)

_Fire._

 

_It burned bright, devouring many houses and eating away at anyone unfortunate enough to get caught in the flames. Smoke filled your lungs as you coughed, the screams of desperate villagers echoing in the air as bandits slaughtered anyone who crossed their path._

 

_Where were your parents? They had gone to the market before the bandits came. But you had already checked there, and they couldn’t be found; dead or alive. Did they go back to your house to find you? No, you would have seen them if that were the case._

 

_You soon found yourself at the main square and they were there, alive and breathing. Along with a large group of strangers covered in dark, raggedy clothes. With a few quick movements too fast for your young eyes to follow, your parents were alive no longer as blades severed their throats, sending them choking on the ground._

 

_A nevermore’s cry rang out as you screamed, catching all the bandits off-guard as they all turned their attention to the sudden appearance of the grimm creature._

 

* * *

 

 

You gasped, jerking yourself awake and sitting up in your sleeping bag, you took deep breaths to steady your heartbeat and calm you down. It wasn’t uncommon for you to have this specific recurring nightmare, especially when you were out on a mission. You never told anyone about it, of course. Cinder would never let you live it down, and Salem would no doubt be disappointed in you. She had worked hard to rid you of emotion, to cleanse you of fear and joy and sadness in order for you to easily follow her orders and kill with no remorse. You would likely be punished for displaying such weakness, and that was something you preferred to avoid at all costs.

 

Looking up at the morning sky, you sighed softly as you packed up your makeshift camp. Climbing onto a griffon, you then set off to Snowpeak Village. It wasn’t much further, all you had to do was go around Vale, and you’d be able to find it in the vast mountain range, atop the highest peak. It was a pain to trek to if you chose not to fly, not to mention it would take much longer. Luckily, that’s what airships and (in your case) grimm were for.

 

You let yourself relax a little, staring down at the thick forest and rolling hills. Vale was visible in the distance, the CCT Tower making it stand out distinctly against the natural surroundings. Deciding to take advantage of what little free time you had at the moment, you checked over your weapon to ensure that the journey hadn’t damaged it.

 

Unsurprisingly, Whiplash was still in perfect condition. The whip was flexible and tough, and the dust contained in the guard hadn’t leaked at all. You gave it a few practice swings, a sense of satisfaction as you heard it snap and crack at the air. Retracting it, you turned your attention back to the landscape as Snowpeak came into view. You landed your griffon a good ways away so no one witnessed you riding what seemed to be a tame grimm, and walked toward the village.

 

Luckily it wasn’t too cold, as it was the middle of the summer. There were a few patches of snow here and there from large deposits due to the past winter, but it seemed to be melting away rather quickly. Approaching the entrance to the village, you put on a friendly façade, smiling at the villagers who greeted you.

 

“Hey there, stranger.” A blond man spoke, being the first to approach you. “What brings you here?”

 

“Oh, I figured I’d just pass through here on my way to Vale,” You responded, keeping a casual tone as you spoke, “I heard the sights here are amazing, so I had to come see for myself.”

 

“Well, we’re far from Mistral, but this village is definitely a sight for sore eyes.” The blond man grinned, and then pointed at the hilt of your whip hanging at your hip, “I'm guessing you’re a huntsman?”

 

You nodded, “Yeah. I graduated from Shade Academy about a year ago.”

 

The man’s eyes widened, “You’re from Vacuo? Damn, what’s it like over there? Is it as archaic as they say it is?”

 

“That depends on what ‘they’ are saying.” You placed your hands on your hips as you continued, “Look, I’d love to stay and chat, but I was hoping I could find a place for a few nights. Is there an inn I could check in at?”

 

Nodding, the man turned and pointed at a large building down the road, “Yeah, of course! Snowed Inn is where you wanna go for accommodations.  If you ever get hungry, though,” He turned back to face you, a wide grin spreading across his features, “be sure to stop by my wife’s restaurant. Her smoked salmon is the best in Remnant, and I promise I'm not just saying that just ‘cause I'm her husband!”

 

You smiled slightly and waved at him as you started toward the inn, “Sure thing. What’s the name of the place?”

 

“Dove’s Restaurant and Grill, it’s just down the road a bit from the inn, you can’t miss it.”

 

“Alright, thanks.”

 

You entered the inn, making your way to the front desk, speaking to the woman behind the counter. “Room for one, please.”

 

“Sure, how many nights do you plan on staying?” The lady offered a kind smile as she looked up at you.

 

“No more than three nights.”

 

She nodded, taking your name and payment as she typed a few things on her scroll, then handed you your room keys. Taking the keys, you walked down the hall to your room. It was cozy and small, but not so small as to be deemed cramped or uncomfortable. As you entered and set your bag down near the bed, you heard a few shouts from outside. Deciding to investigate, you exited your room, locking the door behind you. Once outside, you immediately heard someone exclaim nearby, “August is back!”

 

Turning back to the innkeeper, you asked who August was.

 

“He’s the local huntsman,” she answered, “He’s super strong. Always comes back without a single scratch on him. His daughter’s really good, too. I think she’s attending Beacon Academy this coming semester.”

 

 _Super strong, huh?_ You decided to go check if he happened to be the one you were looking for. You already had little doubt that he was the silver-eyed huntsman Salem spoke of, but you had to be sure.

 

Making your way to the small crowd at the village entrance, you craned your neck to look over everyone to try and catch a glimpse of the huntsman. You guessed he was the man talking to the blond guy who greeted you, his back turned to you so you could only see his black hair and a broadsword on his back. You couldn’t quite hear what they were saying, but you had a good guess as the blond caught sight of you, and pointed in your direction.

 

You suddenly froze, and felt the same sense of dread you felt when you first set out on your mission.

 

August turned to look at where the man was pointing and instantly locked eyes with you, his sparkling silver eyes seeming to stare through your very soul.


	4. A Warm Summer Breeze

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You believe the saying was "Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer". Though the question lingered; were these people truly your enemies?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for any spelling/grammar mistakes, it's past 1:00 AM and exams are kicking my ass...  
> (Don't forget to comment/leave kudos if you liked it! Either is greatly appreciated!)

~~~~"Hey."

  
It was a simple greeting, a well-intended one, no doubt. But no matter how kind the tall, silver-eyed man was; he still terrified you. It was extremely strange to be afraid of a simple huntsman, as the only being you ever genuinely feared in your life was Salem.

  
But this man was not a "simple" huntsman. No, he bore silver eyes, a rare trait that made him extraordinarily powerful against the creatures of grimm and, by extension, you and Salem. He was far from simple.

  
He was a threat that needed to be eliminated.

  
"Are you okay?" He asked. It was then that you realized that you had been staring at him for quite some time now. Shifting your weight awkwardly, you nodded, the small crowd of villagers not helping you manage your anxiety. You could feel their eyes burning into you, watching your every movement, listening to every word you said.

  
"Sorry for staring. It's just... you... have silver eyes..." You stuttered, unsure of what to say. Social situations weren't your strong suit, as the only people you spoke to was Cinder and occasionally Salem (though it wasn't so much you two holding a conversation as it was her relaying orders to you).

  
August's eyes widened slightly at your words. He was quiet for a bit, before he smiled and put a hand on your shoulder.

  
"Thanks," He said, "I'll take that as a compliment."

  
The villagers who gathered to greet August upon his return seemed to notice that he didn't want to be bothered, dispersed and went about their day like nothing happened.

  
"So," He spoke again, trying to strike up a friendly conversation. "You're a huntsman from Vacuo, am I right?"

  
"Yeah..." Was your only response. You needed to calm down, to think. You've taken down countless huntsmen and huntresses before, this should be easy.

  
But then again, you never had to somehow implant another's eyes into your own before. You weren't quite sure how to go about that without alerting the village, it would no doubt be painful for the man and his screams would be heard for miles. No, you had to be clever and cunning. Perhaps, if you pulled the right strings, you wouldn't even have to initiate a fight with him at all. Maybe, if you just played your cards right, you could even get him to cooperate.

  
August spoke again as he started leading you down the road, strolling through town with you by his side.

  
"I've met a few people from Vacuo, back when I fought in the Vytal Festival Tournament. Damn good huntsmen and huntresses, they were. Shade doesn't pull any punches when training their students, huh?"

  
You nodded, mumbling another "Yeah..." as he continued to talk. As much as you wanted to tune him out, you insisted to yourself to listen to him. Pay attention to every detail. You never know when a small bit of info might come in handy.

  
"...Beacon never gave me too much of a challenge, to be honest. I don't know if it's because I'm that good or if the curriculum was that easy. Then again, that was a good few years ago, so maybe their standards have gotten higher."

  
Beacon Academy... Didn't that Innkeeper say something about his daughter attending Beacon? Deciding that it was time for a change of topic, you spoke up.  
"I heard that your daughter will be attending Beacon."

  
August grinned widely, showing off his pearly white teeth.

  
"Yeah, Summer's my pride and joy. I'm real proud of her; working hard and following her dreams, she wants to make Remnant a better place for everyone. She really takes after her mother..."

  
Now, you find yourself surprisingly invested in what he said.

  
"Her mother...?" You asked quietly.

  
"Yeah, Sangria Rose. She was the leader of my team, and a damn good one at that." He looked up at the setting sun as you continued to walk through the village. "Crazy good mom, too. She took care of Summer when I wasn't around, and still found the time to help out around the village. I never met anyone like her, doubt I ever will again..."

  
The tone in his voice turned somber, and he turned his gaze down. He was suddenly silent, which was quite unusual as he couldn't seem to shut up earlier. So you decided to break the silence yourself.

  
"Did something happen to her?"

  
He closed his eyes and sighed, before looking at you. There was a sad, tired look in his silver eyes. Whatever it was that happened to her, you doubt she lived through it.

  
"She left on a mission about a year ago, and never came back. No one knows what happened to her, she didn't even make it to the town she was supposed to defend and her body was never found."

  
Suddenly, he stopped walking, and turned to a small house. Looking around, you realized that you had done a complete circle around town, as the Inn you were staying at was right across the street.

  
"Sorry to bother you," August spoke up, "Travelers don't normally come through here, so I tend to get a little too excited. Anyway, I'm sure Summer's been waiting for me long enough. It was nice to meet you, uh..."

  
Realizing he never got your name, he turned to look at you and smiled sheepishly as he trailed off.

  
"(y/n)"

  
"(y/n)... Well, it was nice to meet you. Hope you have a good night." He waved, then entered his house, closing the door behind him.

  
You turned around, heading into the inn and toward your room as you thought about what to do. The huntsman was the typical noble type, no doubt he would put others' needs before his own.

  
Lying down on your bed, you stared up at the ceiling, thinking about what to do, how to keep things quiet while you got what you came here for. Eventually, the darkened room and silence of the village lulled you to sleep.

 

You had a dreamless sleep that night. A rare occurrence that didn't happen nearly enough to your liking, but it wasn't like you could do anything about it.

  
Getting up and out of bed, you washed up as you went over today's plan in your head. Mentally playing the scenario through, it seemed like a good chance that you'd be able to get this mission done early and flawlessly. The only issue was his daughter, and whether or not she'd show up at an inopportune time...

  
Grabbing some lien and heading out, you went down to the restaurant the man from yesterday recommended to you. You never got his name, but at this point, you hardly cared. If things went smoothly, then you'd be able to leave the village tonight.

  
As you walked down the cobblestone road, you heard someone yell your name. turning around to the source of the voice, sure enough, it was August. He waved at you, a shorter girl wearing a white hood walking beside him. You felt your breath hitch in your throat when you saw her, looking into her own pair of shimmering silver eyes.

  
When the pair reached you, they both smiled sweetly as they said their good mornings. August was quick to strike up conversation.

  
"You going to Dove's for breakfast?" he asked. Once you nodded, his grin widened, "Great! Do you mind if we join you?"

  
You spoke before you could think, saying "Sure, I don't mind at all."

  
The three of you entered Dove's, getting seated and given the breakfast menu, you ordered your food and waited. The girl was first to speak up this time.

 

"So... you're (y/n). I don't think we've been properly introduced; I'm Summer!"

  
"Nice to meet you, Summer." You responded, "Your father spoke fondly of you."

  
You were much more comfortable talking today, though you weren't sure why. Maybe it was Summer's warm and calm attitude, or August's relaxed demeanor. You weren't sure what it was, but it felt... nice. You only just met these two, but you already felt comfortable with them.

  
That wasn't a good sign.

  
You weren't supposed to get comfortable with your target. You weren't supposed to get all friendly with them like this. Why where you acting so strange? What was happening? You figured that putting on a kind exterior would work in your favour, being able to gain his trust and strike when his guard was down. But it seemed to be a double-edged sword when you realized that you were already getting soft, and only two days into your task as well. Definitely not a good sign.

  
When your food came, you ate in silence. You mulled over your thoughts, trying to remind yourself what you were here for. The quiet atmosphere was only broken when Summer spoke up as if she just remembered something.

  
"Oh yeah, I talked to Magnolia yesterday, and she was hoping that I could spend the night at her house tonight. Is that alright, dad?"

  
August nodded, "Yeah,I don't see a problem with that. Just don't cause too much trouble, alright?"

  
"No promises!" Summer giggled, taking another bite of her toast.

  
So Summer wouldn't be home tonight... that definitely made things easier for you.

  
Looks like you were defenitely leaving town tonight.


	5. Silver Eyes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Seizing opportunity, you waste no time in taking advantage of August's caring nature. You have your doubts- but your orders come first, as always.

You spent the rest of the day outside the village by yourself, organizing your thoughts and rallying as many grimm as you could find. It wasn't difficult to find a few packs of beowolves, ursi, boarbatusks, and two nevermore, as well as the griffon you rode on the way to Snowpeak. It wasn't a sizable army, but it was definitely more than capable of tearing apart a small town. Yes, that was enough. All you really needed was to make a threat, after all.

  
As the sunset behind the mountains and the cool twilight air swept through the village, you returned and knocked on August's door. Summer would most likely be at her friend's house by now, giving you the perfect opportunity to make your move.

  
You kept the grimm far enough from the village to keep hidden, but close enough for a quick ambush from all angles if things didn't go according to plan. Hopefully it wouldn't come to that, however.

  
August answered the door, grinning when he saw you and welcoming you into his abode with a smile warm enough to melt even the iciest of hearts. Including yours. You were almost tempted to tell him everything, to help him escape Salem's watchful gaze and keep him and Summer safe. They were wonderful souls, both of them. But you knew what would happen if you double-crossed Salem. She didn't take betrayal well, and would most certainly kill you and the silver-eyed warriors.

  
No matter how wrong this felt, no matter how much you knew you would regret this, you had no choice in the matter. The penalty for going against her orders was death, and you had no intentions of dying anytime soon.

  
"I'm glad you decided to visit, (y/n)," August said, making no attempt to mask the excitement in his voice. "Would you like something to drink? There's coffee, tea, juice... or whiskey, if you're into that."

  
"Just water would be fine, thanks." You replied.

  
He nodded, offering you a seat at the kitchen table as he poured a glass of water for you and himself. Once he finished, he sat down across from you, setting the glasses down on the pinewood table.

  
"So, what brings you here?" He asked, starting conversation.

  
Taking a deep breath, you stared grimly into your glass as you spoke, "Semblance is an interesting thing, isn't it?"

  
Hearing this, August raised an eyebrow as you continued.

  
"I've met many huntsmen and huntresses with a wide range of semblances. Being able to create clones of themself, teleporting through shadows, controlling water... I even met a huntress who could physically crystallize her aura into dust crystals. But... do you know what my semblance is, August?"

  
The huntsman hummed, shaking his head. Turning you gaze up from your glass, you stared him down, your (e/c) eyes boring into his skull.

  
"I have the ability to control the creatures of grimm. I tell them what to do, and they'll do it without hesitation."

  
His eyes widened, his mind processing the information you gave to him, until he carefully asked you a question.

  
"Where are you going with this, (y/n)...?"

  
Sighing, you leaned back in your chair, running your finger along the rim for your glass.

  
"There's currently a large group of grimm surrounding the village, ready to attack on my command. But, if you come with me peacefully, quietly, without a fight... I'll spare the village. Deal?"

  
He was quiet as he contemplated your words. At first he seemed to think you were playing a prank, a sick joke. But when he saw just how serious you were, his expression turned sour. He seemed betrayed, and confused.

  
"Why... Why are you doing this? Why do you need me?"

  
"It's nothing personal. If I had a choice, I wouldn't be doing this in the first place. But... you have silver eyes. That power is both a threat to us, and a power that we need on our side. So, will you cooperate? Or will I have to burn this village because of your own selfishness?"

  
HIs eyes narrowed as he began, choosing his words wisely.

  
"I'll go with you... but only if you keep any and all grimm far away from Snowpeak. Do we have a deal?"

  
You could tell he had many other questions on his mind, and that he was desperate for answers. But with what was at stake, he refrained from asking them. A wise choice.

  
Nodding, you stood from your seat. "Your weapon won't be necessary," You said as the two of you left his home, and made your way down the road to leave the village. A brunette woman who stood watch noticed the two of you, and held you up.

  
"Where are you two going?" She asked. She wasn't hostile, but she seemed curious, and somewhat worried.

  
"There's a pack of grimm nearby," You responded, "I need August's help. There's too many for me to handle alone."

  
An obvious lie; but the brunette bought it and nodded, letting you pass and leave Snowpeak.

  
You walked far down the dirt road, until you turned from the path and ventured deep into the woods. Beowolves growled and snarled at August, but made no move to attack him as per your orders. Keeping a close eye on the silver-eyed huntsman, you stopped in the middle of a small clearing, a nevermore perched on a boulder nearby.

  
"Kneel." You said, retrieving the white glove from you pocket and slipping it onto your hand. Following your command, August knelt down in the soft grass, staring up at you with a neutral look.

  
It almost hurt. You only knew this man for no more than two days, and he already managed to soften you up. You so wanted to let him go, to spare his life. You tried to say something, to tell him that you didn't want this.

  
"I'm sorry." Was all that you said as you held your gloved palm to his face, ready to summon the contained grimm and take his power. Instead of panicking and struggling, he sighed and looked up at you, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

  
"Me too..." He spoke softly, before an insect emerged from the embroidered red glyph.

  
The grimm creature took the shape of a centipede, and the next thing you knew, a tar-like substance shot from the grimm and coated August's eyes. A burning sensation could be felt travelling up you arm and behind your eyes.

  
Once August started screaming, the burning sensation increased tenfold, the pain shooting through your arm as your eyes started to lose focus. Your vision blurred until you could no longer see anything except darkness, the only way you could tell you were still conscious was hearing August's bloodcurdling screams and the immeasurable pain you felt, pain that wracked through your body and and soul.

  
Eventually, his screams were silenced, and the pain ceased as you felt the glove dissipate from your arm. Collapsing blindly to the ground, you covered your face with your hands, eyes squeezed shut as you panted heavily. Once you recovered, you slowly opened your eyes, taking in your surroundings.

  
You were still in the clearing, the nevermore squawking as is tilted its head curiously at you. Turning your gaze from the grimm creature, you looked at the now-deceased huntsman in front of you. Welts spread across his face where the grimm made contact with his flesh, and his eyes were missing from his skull. Sighing, you spoke to the nevermore.

  
"Eat him. I don't want any villagers finding his body... I'll let them think we've both disappeared."

  
Standing to your feet, you trembled slightly. Ensuring you had everything you needed, you called for your griffon as the nevermore devoured August's corpse. Climbing atop the grimm, you took off.

  
You were well aware you left your bag at the inn, but you couldn't find it in yourself to care much about it. All it had was a sleeping bag and a bit of food, you could easily survive the two-day journey without it as long as you didn't stop.

  
Flying over a pond, you looked down in the water, seeing your now-silver eyes staring back up from your reflection.

  
It seems that your mission was a success.


	6. Exposition

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Having returned to Salem, you immediately begin your training to control your newfound power.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is somewhat dialogue-based and, if I admit, a bit rushed. Sorry for any spelling/grammar errors, I haven't properly edited this chapter;;

Salem seemed extraordinarily pleased with your return, your silver eyes gleaming as you approached your seat at the table across from Cinder. She had returned, and by the bitter look on her face, you assumed she had been less successful than you had been.

"Congratulations on your success, (y/n)." Cinder spoke, a slight tinge of venom edging her words. "I only hope Tyrian has had as much success as-"

  
Cut off, said man entered the hall, summer maiden vacant from his presence and a troubled look on his face. He had several burn marks underneath his torn clothes, no doubt injuries from his encounter with either a talented huntsman or the summer maiden herself. Unless he was foolish enough to get himself caught in a burning building or a forest fire, but you doubted he was that incapable. After all, Salem seemed to have high hopes for the man. She had excellent judgement, so you trusted her outlook on him.

  
"I-I'm so sorry," Tyrian stuttered, "The maiden, she was too powerful, I couldn't defeat her on my own. Please, I promise to do better..."

  
Rather than seating himself at the table, he knelt down on the ground in front of the doorway, his head bowed. At this angle, you managed to catch a glance of black scorpion tail lying limp on the ground behind him. The man was a faunus...?

  
"Tyrian," Said faunus' head shot up as he looked to the woman speaking, "I have no doubt that she was powerful, most maidens are. After this meeting, I'd like you to tell me everything about your encounter with the summer maiden. For now, please take a seat."

  
Salem gestured to a chair beside Cinder, and waited patiently as he stood up and obediently followed her orders. Once he sat down beside Cinder, Salem took a moment to look over the three of you before speaking.

  
"Cinder," She began, "What information have you managed to gather about the fall maiden?"

  
"Very little, unfortunately." Cinder kept her amber gaze fixed on the table, "All that I've managed to gather is that she's somewhere in Sanus. Unless (y/n) happened to come across anything else while he was in Snowpeak Village, I'm afraid that's all we have to go on for now."

  
Shaking your head as she looked up to you, your eyes narrowed. A lot of help that was; all that did was narrow down the maiden's location to somewhere in the biggest continent in Remnant that wasn't the tiny village that you had visited.

  
Salem then turned to you.

  
"I see you've managed to obtain the huntsman's silver eyes. Quite an exceptional feat, (y/n)."

  
You nodded, but instead of remaining silent, you finally asked a question that had been tugging in the back of your mind since you returned.

  
"May I ask why we need silver eyes?" You asked carefully, "I understand that they're powerful, but are they not a weapon to be used against the creatures of grimm? If we're not fighting against the grimm, then why-"

  
Salem raised a hand, quietly interrupting you and calling for your silence.

  
"I understand your confusion. But know that, with the right training, a silver-eyed warrior's powers can be used against the four maidens... and the one who granted them their power."

  
Your eyes widened slightly, realizing what she now wanted from you. The wizard that granted the four maidens their powers was still somehow alive, and Salem wanted him dead. She wanted you to kill the wizard.

  
Standing from her seat, she continued.

  
"Ozpin is an arrogant fool, but a powerful fool. He can reincarnate indefinitely whenever he stares death in the face...

  
"That glove was able to transfer the genetics of a silver-eyed huntsman to you. With a few adjustments, I'm sure it could be utilized to transfer energy. Power. I want you to take it from him. Strip him of his magic and put a stop to his endless cycle of reincarnation with those silver eyes. You are the key to our victory. Within a few months, not only will you be able to bring Ozpin and his precious maidens to their knees, but you will hold a power unlike any other. You have my utmost faith, (y/n), and I trust that you will not fail us."

  
Walking from her seat, she brushed by Tyrian as she made her way to the door. The loyal faunus followed her, leaving you and Cinder alone to your own accord. The girl seemed to glare at you as you rose from your own seat, making your way to begin training. You guessed that Salem had intended to put you through special exercises to help you gain control of your newfound silver eyes. As you walked through the winding hallways, a seer approached you, causing you to stop and turn your attention to it as Salem's voice came through the jellyfish-like grimm.

  
"Meet me on the lowest level, your training begins immediately."

  
Seems that you guessed right.

  
The seer followed you as you made your way to the lowest level, an area specially made for sparring and training.

  
Personally, you weren't fond of the seers. There were many grimm that you disliked, but seers unnerved you more than any other. You hated the weird clicking noises they made, and the fact that they were the only species of grimm that you had absolutely no control over frustrated you to no end. You understood their function, of course, but that didn't mean you liked them.

  
You waited in the center of the arena-like room as the seer left, much to your relief. After a few minutes, Salem had joined you, instructing you and teaching you in a manner that reminded you of how she used to when you first joined her. She was patient, but emphasized that time was of the essence as the whole plan depended on you mastering the silver eyes and defeating Ozpin before the huntsman academies began their semester. Apparently, the wizard was the headmaster of Beacon Academy, so defeating him would be no easy task- as if fighting against an immortal magical wizard wasn't hard enough, that is.

  
It was only day one, and Salem's methods of instruction were harsher than before. She assaulted you with grimm you weren't allowed to control until you were on your last legs, sending beowolves, death stalkers, and king taijitus; even the more rare grimm creatures like nuckelavee and beringels made an appearance as she forced you to fight beyond your limit in an attempt to trigger the power behind your silver eyes.

  
It was successful, of course, as was all of her training sessions, as creeps and ursi swarmed around your bruised and bloodied body, you suddenly saw nothing but white as they all closed in.

  
As soon as Salem witnessed the raw, unbridled power behind your eyes, she felt a sudden surge of confidence flow through her. Yes, you were a gifted individual indeed, and there was no doubt in her mind that you would be the key to her coming out on top.


	7. The Wizard of Oz

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finally being deemed fit enough to fight, you have no time to hesitate as you're sent to face off against the wizard.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I made sure to make this chapter longer to make up for the last one having been a little short. I hope you enjoy reading it!

If Salem had one regret, it would have to be finding you too late.

  
You were an irreplaceable asset to her plans, yes. Unfortunately, she found you a few years too late. You were already maturing as a person, and you protected the people of your village despite the fear you struck in their hearts. You already developed your own sense of morality, a small spark of light twinkling in your soul surrounded by the darkness of your aura. She did everything she could to snuff it out, to crush that little bit of morality with malicious training and vile tasks.

  
It almost worked. She was so close to making you a perfect pawn; but when you returned with your silver eyes, the spark had grown into a flickering fire. She knew it was too late for you, and sending you to kill Ozpin was risky. She just had to be clever about it.

 

The few months of extensive training and gruesome trials were far more difficult and painful than anything you had previously been through. By the end of it, you possessed several scars that your aura couldn't heal; the worst of which stretched down diagonally on your back from when you had seen the particularly vicious beowolf a second too late. But such lessons were necessary, as you now had a good grasp on the power behind your silver eyes, and Salem deemed you fit enough to face the Headmaster of Beacon in the upcoming week.

  
According to an informant in Mistral, Ozpin was called to said kingdom to help with a grimm problem in a nearby village that had been forced to evacuate due to rising grimm populations, and any ordinary huntsman sent in hadn't made it back out alive. It was a favourable environment for you to ambush the wizard in, though with your advantage you were still warned to remain cautious should you have to engage in a direct battle against him.

  
You spent the week practicing, preparing for your mission, Salem's warning playing through you mind as a constant reminder of what your fate would be if you failed. According to her, Ozpin had a way with words that plucked a chord in the hearts of many, more often than not he had been able to show people what mankind was truly capable of. To prevent him from putting ideas into your head and possibly turning you against her, her solution was simple.

  
If you returned having failed your goal, you were to be killed. If you failed and tried to escape your punishment, she would find you herself and kill you.

  
Your objective was to kill Ozpin, or die trying.

  
The pressure was high as the deadline approached. You sparred with Cinder and Tyrian whenever you could, sometimes fighting both at once. You always managed to come out victorious, with or without the help of the creatures of grimm. However, they were young and didn't have nearly as much experience as you, such an outcome was inevitable. The true test of your ability would be how you fared against Ozpin.

  
You felt a familiar sense of dread as you prepared for your trip to the small village south of Mistral. You took a deep breath, trying to settle the unease in the pit of your stomach as you examined Whiplash, checking the internal mechanisms to ensure that retracting the whip would remain smooth throughout battle. Looking over the dust containers at the grip, you were pleased to find that they weren't cracked or broken and remained smooth whilst it spun. You clipped extra dust catridges onto your belt, and made sure a spare dagger was accessible on your left thigh. After checking your pocket to ensure you hadn't forgotten a familiar white glove Salem had given you, you deemed yourself ready for your task.

 

With a final deep breath, you mounted a nevermore and set off to Anima.

  
The trip wasn't long as nevermores naturally flew faster than griffons. It only took about four days to get to the torn, abandoned village. During the journey, you had any flying grimm you came across follow you. They would definitely help once you got to the village, giving more grimm creatures for the wizard to deal with.

  
Your strategy was simple, but if executed correctly, you could pull it off. The plan was to overwhelm Ozpin with grimm, to have him tire himself out fighting the creatures until he either fell to them, or defeated them all. You would remain hidden, watching him until you found it necessary to intervene.

  
You hid in a small building at the entrance to the village, keeping watch out of a window in the basement as you kept your aura hidden. All the grimm were alert, listening and watching for any living thing to approach.

  
It took a few hours, but sure enough, he showed up.

  
At first, you weren't sure what it was that struck down the pack of beowolves standing at the village entrance. The man was fast, and would move too quick for the untrained eye to see. But once you overcame the initial shock, you managed to identify the intruder as a silver-haired man, wielding a black cane as his weapon. You watched in awe as he downed grimm after grimm, slaughtering the beasts with speed and finesse you had never seen from any huntsman you had encountered. The grimm hardly landed a scratch on the wizard, and he hardly found the need to use his aura.

  
Once all the surrounding grimm had been eradicated, you swallowed you fear and rose from your place of hiding. Ozpin currently had his back faced toward you, his shoulders rising and falling as he caught his breath. At least he had been somewhat spent, even if it had only been a little.

  
You extended your whip, cracking it against the cobblestone pavement of the road, catching his attention. He turned around to face you, meeting your silver gaze with his own caramel brown stare. You could feel the blood drain from your face as you trembled, and you suddenly found it difficult to breathe. Only one thought ran through your mind as you faced your opponent.

  
_I'm gonna die._

  
Summoning whatever resolve you had left, you shook your head in an attempt to rid your mind of such a thought. Gripping your whip, you forced your legs to move, running at Ozpin and swinging your weapon once you were in range. He jumped into the air, making an attempt to leap over your head and land behind you.

  
Anticipating this, you swung your whip up, successfully wrapping it around his ankle and pulling him down into to pavement. Wasting no time you spun your dust cartridge, activating the lightning dust and sending an electrical current down your whip, intending to electrocute him into submission. Before the current reached him, however, he stabbed his cane into your whip. A green aura appeared to cover his body, and the current stopped as soon as it reached his cane. He quickly freed himself of your whip, and charged at you with the same incredible speed you witnessed earlier.

  
Having no time to counter, you raised your arms to protect yourself as he jabbed his cane into various points across your body before he forcefully lunged at your chest; sending you flying back, you lost your grip and dropped your weapon as you soon found yourself sprawled across the ground. You felt your body tremble as you rose to your feet, and was immediately met with a hit on your left side. You managed to catch a glance as he swung at your right, giving you a split second to react as you grabbed his cane and unsheathed your dagger. You slashed at his chest, only grazing the fabric of his clothes as he moved back to avoid your counterattack.

  
You held firmly onto his cane, refusing to let go even as you felt your hand begin to burn. You continued swinging your dagger with your left arm, attempting to land a hit on him. It was difficult, however, as he dodged effortlessly and seemingly left light green shadows of himself where you attacked. You involuntarily loosened the grip on his cane after a few moments as the burning pain became unbearable. In that instant he ripped his cane from your grasp and swung at your right side, sending you back down to the ground with such force that you felt your left arm break as it made contact with the pavement.

  
Without thinking, you glared up at him as your vision blurred white, forcing him to back away from you as the energy from your silver eyes tore at his clothes and burned his skin. Once your vision cleared and the light died down, you quickly retrieved your weapon while he was stunned. You put your dagger away as you picked up Whiplash, your aura having mended the burn on your right hand and allowing you to handle the whip properly and without pain.

  
Before he could recover, you swung your whip and wrapped it around his waist as you scrolled through your dust cartridges and activated the fire dust. Ozpin only had a split second to react as he shielded his body with his aura, the burning fires of the dust scorching his body. Once the effects of the dust faded you swung your whip to the right, sending him crashing into the stone wall of a building.

  
You saw his emerald green aura flicker as he fell to the ground, managing to land on his feet. You felt a small sense of pride, but that was short lived as you saw your own (colour) aura flicker across your body. So far, all it could do for your broken arm was numb the pain slightly, but you were too weak at the moment to focus on healing it. You had to end this now.

  
You quickly charged at him again, summoning the power in your silver eyes once more, letting a white film coat your vision. Ozpin stabbed his cane into the ground, a weak green shield appearing around him before he charged at you.

  
The light of your silver eyes quickly ate away the shield protecting him, forcing it to break and giving you an opening to strike. Seizing the opportunity, you activated what was left of your lightning dust and swung your whip at him, landing an electrifying hit on his chest. The impact of the whip and the force of energy from your silver eyes sent him crashing back into the stone wall, causing him to drop his cane from the impact. He fell to the ground as the light faded, sitting down with his back leaning against the wall with his head hung low. His hand gripped the new wound chest as his aura faintly flickered in an attempt to utilize anything he had left. Unfortunately for him, it was in vain.

  
Retracting Whiplash and hooking the weapon onto your belt, you approached the wizard cautiously. The adrenaline of battle slowly leaving your body and the pain in your broken left arm growing. You prepared to retrieve the white glove from your pocket as you spoke, your voice cracking slightly.

 

"She was right about you," you muttered, just loud enough for him to hear. "You truly are an arrogant fool."

  
In response, he slowly lifted his head. Caramel brown eyes met silver, and blood dripped from his lips as he spoke.

  
"...You have silver eyes..."

  
At that, you heard footsteps behind you. Turning around quickly, your good hand reached for Whiplash as you caught a glimpse of a blonde woman, holding what appeared to be a riding crop. Before you could extend your whip, the woman swung the crop, and you felt a large stone hit the side of your head.

  
Falling to the ground due to the force of the impact, your vision slowly faded to black as you could do nothing but watch the woman approach.


	8. Interrogation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stuck in a room alone with Ozpin, he offers you a second chance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize in advance if Ozpin is out of character, he's kind of difficult to write... but I hope this short chapter is enjoyable nonetheless!

Darkness was the only thing that greeted you once you awoke, along with a buzzing pain in the side of your skull. At first you were surprised and somewhat relieved at the fact that you were alive, but the relief was short-lived once you felt that your wrists and ankles had been bound to the chair you were seated in. For a split second you feared that you might had gone blind, until you realized that you had been blindfolded, no doubt to prevent you from utilizing your silver eyes.

  
You should have known that he wouldn't kill you. If he knew that you worked with Salem, he'd want information. Her plans, her whereabouts, her allies... you mentally cursed yourself for not being more careful, and for not having the foresight of Ozpin having brought along a companion for his mission. It was fuzzy, but you still remembered the blonde woman who had taken you down with a single stone.

  
The sound of a door opening and closing interrupted your thoughts, footsteps approaching and stopping in front of you. At that moment, you pondered over what kind of torture they'd put you through in order to make you talk. Would they electrocute you? Burn you? Or perhaps they'd remove your fingernails? You were well familiar with methods of torture, as you had utilized many in your search for the maidens.

  
"Attempted assassinations aren't uncommon," the presumed male began, "But from an individual such as yourself, well... personally, I'd like to know why someone with such a rare gift would side with someone like Salem."

  
You had little doubt in your mind that the man speaking was Ozpin.

  
"The answer is quite simple," you stated, "I don't want to die. If survival means killing a few huntsmen and huntresses, then so be it."

  
You suddenly feel a hand gently lift the cloth acting as your blindfold. Blinking, you look up to see the same man you had just recently tried to kill, staring down at you with a soft expression- one you recognized as pity. You had half a mind use your silver eyes, but decided against it.

  
"Tell me, what's your name?" He asked. You narrowed your eyes slightly in suspicion as he removed the cloth completely, stepping away and setting it on a table in front of you as he took a seat on the other side across from you.

  
"(y/n)." You answered.

  
"(y/n)..." He placed his arms on the table, resting on hand on top of the other as he leaned forward slightly. "Do you know what I see when I look at you?"

  
You blinked slowly, waiting for him to continue.

  
"I see a child," He began,"A lost child who made all the wrong choices, and wandered down a particularly dangerous path. It's not to late to turn back, to atone for your past mistakes. You're capable of so much good, (y/n)."

  
As warm as his words made you feel, you couldn't help but laugh at that last statement.

  
"I don't know if you've noticed, but I've ended numerous lives and destroyed more families than I count. As far as I'm concerned, my capabilities range from bad to pure evil."

  
Ozpin gave you another pitiful gaze. "Everyone in Remnant is capable of both good and bad. I've seen what true evil is firsthand; I can assure you, (y/n), that's not who you are-"

  
"How do _you_ know who I am?!" You interrupted, growing irritated and raising your voice. "You don't know what I've been through or what I've done. I literally just tried to kill you! What makes you think I can make up for what I've done? That I can atone for the countless atrocities I've committed?!"

  
"Because you're human. You're so much more than just a tool to be used for evil."

  
"Stop it."

  
"You're far from evil, (y/n)."

  
"I said stop it!"

 

"You don't have to be what she wants you to be."

  
Shutting your eyes and looking away from him, you felt tears run down your face. Why was he treating you with such kindness? Why didn't he just kill you? Why did he have so much faith in you, someone who had just attempted to take his life? Why did his words hurt more than any form of torture Salem subjected you to?

  
Your mouth moves before you can think, voice cracking as you speak.

  
"I'm scared..." you whimpered, "I don't know what to do..."

  
Ozpin rose from his seat, sensing that you no longer posed much of a threat in the state you were in; he released your wrists and ankles from their bindings.

  
"What you want to do with your life is for you to decide," he said, "But if you're interested, Beacon Academy is in need of a Grimmology professor. Given your experience with the creatures of grimm, I have no doubt you'd meet the qualifications befitting a teacher."

  
That was certainly unexpected. Giving him an incredulous look, he simply offered a small smile in return as stepped back, and made his way to leave the small room you were confined to. You sighed, and spoke up before he left.

  
"Do you do this to everyone who's made an attempt on your life?" You asked, only half-joking.

  
He paused at the doorway for a moment, seemingly pondering over the question.

  
"No, but I suppose you're a special case." He glanced back and tilted his head slightly, silently asking if you had any more questions.

  
"Why am I a 'special case'?" You asked. He remained silent once more before turning away from you.

  
"Because I believe that, with your help, we can save Remnant."

  
He opened the door, stepping forward to leave before you stood from your seat. In a small moment of adrenaline, all fears you previously had faded as you spoke in a firm voice.

 

The choice you were about to make was dangerous, as it risked crossing Salem. You knew what would happen if she found you out, but frankly, you were tired. You were so tired of being afraid of her, tired of being forced to obey her without questions. You wanted control again. You wanted to have a choice, to live your life free of fear and free of her. Right now, you had a second chance. But most of all, you were given a _choice;_ and you were confident that you would finally make the right one.

  
"I accept your offer."


	9. New Beginnings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Starting your new life as a teacher at Beacon Academy, you have trouble adjusting; and the sight of a familiar name gives you second thoughts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just wanted to thank everyone for their comments! I don't say it enough, but I truly appreciate the kind words- I don't know what to say other than thanks!

At first, you thought this would be a good idea.

  
Now, however, you were having second thoughts as you realized that you had no experience teaching whatsoever. Not to mention the fact that you never got a proper education, or went to any official school, combat school or not. Everything you learned was either self-taught, or Salem had been the one to guide you; and as... _efficient_ as her teaching methods were, you doubted they would be practical in a classroom setting.

  
Sighing, you put your hands over your face as you leaned back in your chair. Currently, you sat at a writing desk in your new room. It was small, but not too small as to be seen as cramped. It was cozy and comfortable, and you appreciated it.

  
Removing your hands from your eyes, you looked down at your notes. You were writing down everything you knew about the creatures of grimm, different species, and how common each species was. You already had all the details of everything down, and you were trying to highlight the important bits to have your future students take note of. That's something that teachers did, right?

  
Problem was, you were having difficulty determining what was important and what wasn't. According to you, all of it was necessary for everyone to know, a small detail could be vital to one's survival.

  
Huffing, you decided to take a break and stood from your seat. Pacing around the room a bit, you paused in front of your window, staring out at the landscape surrounding the school and the kingdom of Vale. As beautiful as it was, there was something about that one mountain nearby Mountain Glenn that put you on edge. You could feel an enormous dark energy emanating from it, similar to what you felt when you sensed creatures of grimm- but bigger.

  
Much bigger.

  
You had approached Ozpin on the subject when you first noticed it, but he dismissed you and said that it was undoubtedly caused by a high population of grimm gathering there. He claimed it was due to the fall of Mountain Glenn, and spoke no further of the subject.

  
As grateful as you were that he had given you a chance at a new life at Beacon Academy, you couldn't help but distrust him. He wasn't telling you the whole story, as if you weren't already well aware of the role he plays in Remnant's history and the secrets he keeps from humanity. You supposed he had his own reasons, but it bothered you nevertheless.

  
A light _"ping!"_ sounded from your scroll snapped you from your thoughts, indicating that you had received a message. Unlocking the device, you found that the message turned out to be Glynda sending you the attendance for your classes. Luckily you only taught two periods per day, both of which were with the first-years. Hopefully, since they as new to the school as you were, they wouldn't notice any mistakes you were bound to make.

  
Scrolling through the list of names, you mindlessly skimmed over the names.

  
_Vivian Autumn, Skye Bleu, Raven Branwen, Qrow Branwen, Amelia Cobalt, Violetta Derse..._

  
Whilst you scrolled, a particular name caught your eye.

  
_Summer Rose._

  
You felt your heart drop at the sight of the familiar name. No, you definitely hadn't forgotten about her. Not since you first met her and her father. There was little doubt that she forgot you, and at that thought anxiety rushed through your brain. What if she asked you about August? He was last seen leaving the village with you, she'd surely have questions about him.

  
What about your silver eyes? Would she notice the change in your eye colour? If she did, how could you possibly explain that away?

  
Putting the scroll away into your pocket, you began pacing around the room again. Should you bring this up to Ozpin? He didn't yet know that you hadn't gotten your silver eyes naturally. Not to mention that August had also attended Beacon; Ozpin would likely remember him. How could you tell him that you had murdered his former student in cold blood, all just to steal his eyes?

  
You started panicking, until your eyes landed on a locked drawer on your desk. The drawer contained Salem's white glove- Ozpin knew nothing about it.

  
You slowly approached the drawer. Maybe you could still complete your mission. Maybe you could catch him off-guard and steal his power. Maybe Salem would still take you back.

  
_Maybe..._

  
You unlocked the drawer, looking down at the white silk glove containing the parasitic grimm. You could defeat him, you did it before. You could steal his power and return to Salem victorious, you could hold a magical power unlike any other. You just had to take the glove and fulfill your task.

  
You hesitated, however, as your fingers brushed the fine silk.

  
_"...I believe that, with your help, we can save Remnant."_

  
Returning your hand to your side, you closed and locked the glove away once more. No, you couldn't do something like that. You couldn't just stab him in the back, not with the lengths he's going through just to help you. He's given you a job, a home, and a new beginning to a new life.

  
You couldn't hurt someone like that.

  
Not again.

  
You had to tell him about how you got your eyes. About August and your mission in Snowpeak. You had to tell him everything.

  
Retrieving your scroll from your pocket, your finger hovered over the "call" button on his contact. No, this was something you had to discuss in person, face to face. Instead, you sent him a message reading _'I need to talk to you about something important. I'm sorry if you're busy, but it can't wait.'_

  
You exited your room and entered the hallway as your scroll notified you of a new message.

  
_'Very well. I'll be waiting in my office.'_

  
Taking a deep breath, you trekked through the winding hallways before exiting the building, making your way to the main tower. As you entered the elevator and pressed the button to his office, you tried to think of what to say and how to say it.

  
Once you finally reached the top, the door opened revealing Ozpin and Glynda holding a conversation. The two were alerted to your presence, and turned their attention to you as you entered.

  
"Was there an issue with the attendance list I sent you?" Glynda spoke first, looking down at her scroll presumably going over said list.

  
"No, the attendance seems fine," You replied," I just need a moment with Ozpin; if you two don't mind, that is."

  
Glynda looked to Ozpin, who nodded his head. Putting her scroll away, she then took your place in the elevator, leaving you two alone as it closed.

  
"What is it you'd like to talk about, (y/n)?" Ozpin asked, breaking the clockwork-filled silence.

  
"I want to talk about... my silver eyes." You responded, avoiding his gaze.

  
He hummed and sat forward in his seat, leaning on his desk. Taking that as a notion to go on, you continued.

  
"I wasn't born with silver eyes. I didn't get silver eyes until a few months ago, and... I'm not exactly proud of what I did to get them.

  
"I've done tons of stuff that I'm not proud of. The killing, the torture, everything I did for Salem... but I think this might have been the worst thing I could have possibly done. I didn't just kill a gifted huntsman, I stole his eyes to use them against their intended purpose."

  
Looking up at Ozpin, his eyebrows raised slightly as he listened.

 

"The huntsman... his name was August. He was so nice, so... amazing. But now he's gone because of me. I took him away from his village, his daughter..."

  
You paused, taking a moment to steady your breathing as you suddenly found yourself getting extremely stressed out. Taking this moment, Ozpin spoke up.

  
"Take your time. I want to hear everything, if that's alright with you."

  
You nodded, taking a moment to recall the mission. It seemed so long ago, but you could remember every detail so clearly.

  
So you told him everything. You told him what Salem had tasked you with, and how you met August and Summer. You told him about how you took the entire village hostage with creatures of grimm, and lured him away from his home. You told him about the glove Salem gave you, and the parasitic grimm dwelling within it.

  
You told him that you had intended to use your eyes to defeat him, and were tasked with stealing his own magical abilities.

  
Once you were finished, Ozpin sat back in his chair, taking a sip of his coffee. His brows furrowed, and he seemed deep in thought.

  
You remained silent, listening to the ticking of the clockwork mechanisms above your head.

  
"So," He began, "What you're telling me is that Salem now possesses grimm creatures capable of stealing specific powers?"

  
You nodded you head in response. "Yes, though she showed no intentions to create another grimm creature to steal silver eyes. I believe she'll focus on the maiden's powers instead."

  
"And there's still the matter concerning your situation. It wouldn't be safe for you outside of Vale..."

  
You shifted uncomfortably as he spoke. Yes, while it was extremely risky for you to leave the safety of the kingdom's walls, you were still supposed to be a huntsman. You could definitely handle staying near the school, but it would make teaching difficult. How could you teach about grimm without taking the students to fight them first-hand?

  
"For now, I advise that you remain at Beacon. Save the field trips for later in the semester."

  
Nodding, you stepped back to take your leave.

  
"By the way..." Ozpin spoke up, "Do you still have the glove she gave you?"

  
"No, I burned it as soon as I could." You lied.

  
He nodded, and let you leave to do your own thing.

  
As you rode the elevator down to the main floor, you couldn't help but feel a slight pang of guilt for lying about the glove. Surely you should turn over such a powerful artifact?

 

You shook the thought away. No, you would keep it for now.

  
You never know when it might come in handy.


	10. Reunions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Teaching the students of Beacon Academy came quite naturally to you. However, one student in particular does little to hide her distrust in you.
> 
> Ozpin, surprisingly enough, is plagued with anxious thoughts of things to come.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, I started from scratch with this chapter. After I posted it yesterday, I started clean and tried to go for what I had wanted to do before.
> 
> Again, sorry if Ozpin seems out of character. He's... really difficult to write;;

Being a teacher wasn't quite as difficult as you had anticipated. The students (for the most part) were well-behaved, and Peter Port, the T.A, was a great help in classroom management and lesson preparation. Your students all understood the classwork, they handed assignments in on time, and they kept up with few problems. So far the class average was 86, but there were several students who were getting full marks on every quiz, worksheet, and major test.

  
One of those students was Summer Rose.

  
She was much different from when you last saw her. She was very quiet, hardly saying a word and rarely contributing to class discussions. You often caught her staring at you with an emotion you could only describe as suspicion and betrayal. Of course, you weren't stupid. You knew exactly why she acted the way she did, and you couldn't blame her. She knew you had something to do with her father's disappearance, and she was keeping her eye on you.

  
Later on in he week, you overheard her talking to Ozpin in an empty hallway.

  
"Professor Ozpin, please! There's something not right about him- he did something wrong, I can feel it. He was the last person to be seen with my dad before he disappeared and he's responsible for it, I just _know_ it. Can't you do something?"

  
Your breath caught in your throat. What could Ozpin say to that? Would he tell her the truth? There's no way he would be able to come up with a lie convincing enough for her, she was much too smart to fall for thinly veiled fibs lacking any reasonable explanation.

  
"Miss Rose," He spoke carefully, "I'm truly sorry about your father. He was a bright student and an excellent huntsman. I've already spoken to Professor (y/n) on this matter, and I can assure you that he has already received enough punishment for his mistakes. I understand that you're upset with him, and rightfully so.

  
"But time passes. Days turn to months and the seasons change, as does both people and the world. I'm not saying that you should forgive him for what he did- that is entirely up to you. No, I'm asking you to understand that just like everything else in Remnant, he has changed. He's no longer the same person he was months ago, nobody is."

  
There was silence as Summer thought through his words.

  
"Well..." She muttered, "He does seem kinda different from when I last saw him..."

  
There was another brief pause before Ozpin spoke up.

  
"Now, I do believe the next class begins in two minutes. If you don't hurry, I'm afraid you'll be late."

  
Realizing that he was indeed correct, she nodded and rushed to her next class, catching up with the rest of her team on the way.

  
You smiled softly to yourself as you remained hidden around the corner. Words couldn't describe how grateful you were to have not killed Ozpin when you were supposed to. He truly was a remarkable man, and you couldn't possibly thank him enough nor repay him for what he's done for you. With every passing day, these feelings of affection only grew stronger, especially when you interacted with him.

  
Walking back down the hallway in the direction of your classroom, you decided to prepare for the next day's classes.

  
Casting a knowing glance in your direction, Ozpin made his way to his office. Despite being hidden, he knew that you were there for the last minute of his talk with Summer.

  
He meant every word he said. You had changed immensely in the last few days that he'd known you, it was plain for anyone to see. Yes, you made mistakes; many mistakes. But if he judged you on those past mistakes, that would make him Remnant's biggest hypocrite. The two of you both had blood on your hands from countless errors and misjudgments.

  
Many things you did were indeed unforgivable, but he was just as guilty.

  
It's true that when he first laid eyes on you, he saw a child who made the wrong choices. But after giving you another option- another chance, you grew up quickly and managed to easily adapt. Much like the students you taught, you were learning. Though perhaps a several days ago you wouldn't have hesitated to attack him under Salem's command, he now greatly trusted you and your improved judgement.

  
Arriving in his office, he stared out the large windows behind his desk as he got lost in thought.

  
You were an excellent teacher, explaining topics with simplistic sophistication that anyone could understand. You were patient and eager to help those who needed it. His thoughts lingered on you until his mind drifted to your previous affiliation.

  
_Salem._

  
How long would it be until she discovered that you had abandoned her in favour of her enemy, the very person you were ordered to kill? It was possible that she was currently under the impression that you had died, but she had connections. It would only be a matter of time before she tracked you down and made attempt after attempt to end your life until she succeeded. In truth, he was quite worried about you. He knew Salem well enough to know that she would stop at nothing until she got what she wanted, and if she wanted your demise, then you were in great danger.

  
Ozpin narrowed his eyes slightly in thought.

  
You were safe in Vale, yes. But you were now an official huntsman and teacher at Beacon Academy, it was inevitable for you to have to leave the safety of the kingdom's defenses. Not just as a huntsman, but as a teacher. It was part of the curriculum for every teacher to escort the students on a simple search and destroy mission outside the kingdom.

  
Sighing softly to himself, he poured himself a cup of hot chocolate before seating himself at his desk, mulling over bits of tedious paperwork.

  
Yes, it was inevitable that you would have to leave the kingdom. As such, it was also inevitable that Salem would keep her word and eliminate you for betraying her. He couldn't keep you safe, no matter what he tried.

  
Instead, he would simply have to ensure that you were ready.


	11. Artistic Interpretation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Having too much time on your hands, you set off to spend time in the city of Vale.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To be honest, this is mostly a filler chapter, and an excuse to get the reader interested in art (which has been a recurring theme in RWBY).
> 
> I'm running out of chapter names

After about a month of teaching, you managed to get the hang of things easily. You had finished preparing the rest of the semester's lesson plans, and lately found yourself with quite a bit of free time with nothing to do.

  
You used to look over your lesson plans, sharpen your dagger, repair and clean Whiplash, and walk around the school grounds when you had nothing else to do. However, you had already read over all your lesson plans at least three times now, your dagger was sharp enough to slice cardboard with very little effort, and Whiplash needed no more repairs and was cleaner than a whistle. You still walked around the school, but it wasn't didn't pass the time quickly enough. Luckily, Peter had noticed your dilemma, and offered advise.

  
"Why not take up a hobby?" The mustached man suggested. You perked up at the thought, but that offered a new question. The two of you were currently sorting through the course material in your classroom, organizing notes and diagrams.

  
"That sounds good," You responded, "But what kind of hobby?"

  
Pausing at that question, Peter set down the stack of lancer notes. He hummed in thought, before sighing and sorting through his papers once more.

  
"I'm not quite sure," He said after the brief silence, "What do you enjoy doing?"

  
You paused at his question, placing a sketch of a goliath in a stack of other grimm diagrams. You weren't sure what you liked doing. When you were with Salem, you spent all your free time managing your weapons and training in combat. Even then, you wouldn't really call it "free time", as there was always something to be done. There was never any sitting around.

  
As for what you did before Salem took you, you weren't sure. She had taken you when you were still young, only fifteen years old. After the bandits came and killed your parents, your time just passed by without you realizing it. The only thing you did was command the grimm creatures around your village and kept everyone in line. You hardly remember a thing about your life before Salem, it was just a blur of vague memories.

  
"To be honest, I'm not sure." You finally spoke, "I don't think I've ever had this much free time before. I never really had the time to explore hobbies and find what I like to do."

  
Peter hummed in response, then paused once more, examining a rather detailed sketch of a death stalker.

  
"Say... are these all hand-drawn?" He asked.

  
"Yeah," You answered, "I drew them myself."

  
Placing the sketch with the others, he turned his attention to you.

  
"Well, you seem to have quite the talent in artistry. Why not further explore you potential by drawing and painting?"

  
Your eyes widened slightly as you finished sorting through the grimmology notes. That was definitely an idea you could get behind. When you had drawn diagrams and rough sketches of grimm creatures for class, you were in a state of complete focus and serenity. Perhaps drawing more often than just for teaching would help pass time faster than walking through the all-too-familiar paths and hallways of the school.

  
"I think that's a wonderful idea," You smiled softly at the T.A, "Thank you, Peter."

  
"Anytime, (y/n)." He nodded, stacking the last few papers onto their designated stacks. Both of you stood from your seats, placed the papers in the drawers of the desk, and bid each other farewell as you left the classroom.

  
_Art, huh?_

  
Well, school was put on hold for the weekend to allow students some time in the city. There was still time, you could catch a shuttle there and pick up some basic art supplies. A couple of sketchbooks, some brushes and paint, and maybe some spare pencils.

  
Making sure you had your wallet on you, you made your way to the shuttles and hopping on one set to depart in a few minutes. To your surprise, Glynda was also seated on the airship. She seemed somewhat taken aback by your appearance, no doubt surprised that you intended on visiting the city. You had never shown any interest in the urban area, and preferred to remain at Beacon Academy. This would be your first time entering the city of Vale.

  
You waved, greeting the huntress with a kind "Hello" as you sat across from her. Returning the gesture, she made no attempt to shoo you away as the airship took off for it's destination.

  
"This is definitely a surprise." She said, "I thought you didn't like crowds."

  
"I don't," You replied, "But I'd like to grab a few things. Just some art supplies, nothing too much."

  
"Art supplies? I didn't know you were an artist."

  
"I didn't either, but Peter suggested I try my hand at it. Something to occupy me in my spare time, I suppose. What brings you into the city?"

  
"I just needed some time away from the school. Ozpin convinced me to take a break even though I still have to finish grading some recent assignments." She sighed softly.

  
"Well, if you're not too busy then, do you think you could show me around? I'd probably get lost within five minutes on my own," You smiled awkwardly.

  
"I suppose; it's not like I have anything better to do."

  
Smiling brightly and thanking her, the two of you chatted idly during the trip to the city. Once you landed, you both exited the airship and wandered around as she told you where certain shops were and what they sold. You took note of the dust shops and weapon repair shops, until she led you to the craft store.

  
It was a small shop by the name of "Sapphire's Art Emporium", and had everything you needed. A vast array of brushes and pencils, paints of all kinds in all sorts of colours, canvas and papers in any size you'd need. Upon entering the store, a kind faunus with a black cat tail welcomed you warmly, and eagerly answered any questions you had and helped you find anything you needed.

  
You soon found yourself browsing the watercolour paints. The faunus introduced herself as Sapphire, the owner of the shop, and left you to your devices. Both you and Glynda looked over the shelves of water-based paints, looking for a decent colour pallet that was good quality but not too pricey. Lucky for you, Glynda had a good eye for bargains.

  
As you moved to the section displaying brushes and sponges, Glynda informed you that she would go to a nearby café to get some food, and that she'd meet back with you within ten minutes or so. You nodded, watching her leave before you went back to browsing. Only a few minutes had passed before you heard someone enter the shop.

  
Glancing over, you caught a glimpse of a scrawny brunet man. Something about the strange man made you feel uneasy, but you paid him now mind as you picked out a few fluffy brushes seemingly meant for painting with watercolour.

  
In the background you heard Sapphire greet the new customer. You dismissed their conversation, tuning them out as you turned to the display of pencils and cases of charcoal. Your attention turned back to Sapphire and the new customer, however, when you heard the faunus yelp in pain.

  
"Whaddaya know, it really is real." A masculine voice spoke, presumably belonging to the male.

  
Looking over your shoulder, you saw Sapphire holding her tail, trying to pry it out of the man's tight grip.

  
"Please let go..." She whimpered quietly, avoiding eye contact.

  
"Sure, I'll let you go," the man snarled, tugging harshly on her tail and causing her to trip forward, landing on the hardwood floor.

  
Narrowing your eyes, you set down your items and walked over, the man's back facing you as he stood over Sapphire's fragile frame. You placed a hand on his shoulder, and spoke with a calm rage.

  
"I think you should leave." You stated simply. The man scoffed in response, shrugging your hand away before turning to face you fully. He stood at the same height as you, maybe a tad bit shorter.

  
"And who are you to tell me what to do?" He spat, "Why the hell're you defending this low-life mutt?"

  
"I'm giving you one more chance to leave before I force you out." You said, stepping forward in a semi-threatening manner. The man rolled his eyes, muttering something about "filthy animals" before throwing a punch at you.

  
The man's movements were slow and sluggish, making it easy for you to move out of the way of his fist before grabbing him by his shirt and shoving him out the door. You remained in the doorway as he stumbled back, glaring at you. The man made a move to attack again, but before he could, you brought your leg up and planted your foot into his gut, sending him sprawling back onto the pavement. He got up to his feet, glaring at you again before cutting his losses and leaving as you showed no signs of backing down.

  
Once you were sure the man was gone, you entered the shop again. Sapphire was standing in front of you, gently massaging her tail as she watched you.

  
"Are you okay?" You asked. She nodded in response, muttering a quiet "thank you" before turning and standing behind the checkout counter. Deciding to leave her be, you retrieved your supplies and grabbed a box of pencils, bringing them to the counter.

  
Sapphire looked over, totaling the price on the register, her hands shaky as her fingers pressed the buttons.

  
"...Are you sure you're alright?" You asked again. She nodded once more before smiling sadly.

  
"Yeah, I'm good. That actually happens a lot- you'd think I would've gotten used to it by now."

  
"Really?"

  
"Yup. You don't have to act so surprised, stuff like this happens a often to people like me."

  
"People like you?"

  
"You know, faunus? Where have you been the last century?" She joked, bringing up your total and placing your supplies into a bag.

  
Paying for your items, you took the bag and thanked her as you left. As soon as you exited the shop, Glynda met up with you.

  
"Good, you're done. We should get back to Beacon, it's getting late." She said, typing a few things on her scroll before putting it away and leading you to the pick-up point.

Looking to the west, you watched the sun set below the horizon, painting the sky brilliant oranges and bright pinks.

  
Despite the beautiful scene, our thoughts were clouded by the incident that just took place. You hadn't realized that humans discriminated the faunus, though you supposed you shouldn't have been surprised.

  
Even before you worked for Salem, you witnessed humanity's unfair judgement firsthand. Not just against faunus, but against anyone who differentiated from the societal norm. It truly disgusted you.

  
As a whole, humanity was senseless and flawed.

  
Sighing, you boarded the airship with Glynda, taking the seat across from her.

  
What happened was small, yes. But it was because it was so small that it concerned you. If humans got so upset and enraged at something so simple as being different, was there really any hope for them?

  
Once again, you found yourself questioning your choices.


	12. Elegance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Despite your reluctance to attend social events, you were required to attend the school's annual dance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait for this chapter, but I made sure to make it longer to help make up for it! Also I apologize for any spelling errors, if you find any please let me know so I can fix them!
> 
> (Happy Valentine's day!)
> 
> Edit: fixed the weird spacing between the paragraphs. I guess it's different between WordPad and Microsoft Word;;

“All teachers are required to supervise and chaperone the dance.”

  
Glynda’s words repeated in your mind as you wandered the city of Vale, searching for the clothing store the huntress had shown you no more than a month ago.

  
When the annual dance was first announced, you thought nothing of it and planned on remaining in your room to work on one of your recent watercolour landscapes. You didn’t realize that this was mandatory for all staff to attend, and you were already dreading the night of the event.

  
Ever since joining Beacon Academy as a teacher, you had definitely improved in the “social skills” department. However, you still were far from fond of large social events such as parties, proms, and formal dances. You didn’t even know how to dance, much less own appropriate clothes to wear to such an event.

  
All you had to do was supervise the students, it’s not like you were required to socialize. You’d probably keep quiet and stay in less crowded areas. Worst case scenario would be someone asking you to dance, but that was very unlikely to happen.

  
Shaking your head to clear your mind of such thoughts, you gazed at the entrance to the store you had been looking for. Entering the building, you were met with a sea of racks and shelves of fancy clothes. You felt rather out of place wearing your typical everyday huntsman attire among the sharply-dressed employees working at the store.

  
One of the employees; a ginger-haired man, greeted you with sparkling eyes and a warm smile and asked if you needed help. Explaining your situation, he nodded and led you to the fitting rooms. Taking a strip of tape and taking your measurements, he left for a moment to retrieve several articles of clothing and handed them to you upon returning. Thanking him, you entered an unlocked room and tried the clothes on.

  
The clothes were fancy, yet simple. The outfit the man (who went by the name of Jupiter) picked out for you consisted of a plain button-up white shirt, a black vest, black trousers, and some black lace-up dress shoes. It was comfortable and easy to move in, surprisingly enough.

  
You examined yourself in the full-length mirror as Jupiter knocked on the door to the change room you were in.

  
“Everything going okay?” He asked.

  
“Yeah,” you responded, “I think I’ll take it.”

  
“That’s great to hear,” you could hear the smile in his voice, “Just bring everything up front when you’re done.”

  
“Sure thing.” You said, listening to him walk off as you changed back into your regular clothes.

  
Once you left the changing room, you ended up wandering over to the small table displaying jewelry. A specific necklace caught your eye- several glimmering sapphires embedded in the silver chain. The bright blue gemstones immediately reminded you of a certain faunus who’s eyes held the same colour, as did her name.

  
You hadn’t seen Sapphire since your last encounter, when you first entered her shop and defended her from the strange man who harassed her.

  
Deciding to pay her a visit before you returned to Beacon Academy, you took the necklace and paid for your things before making your way to her shop.

  
The city was unusually quiet, not that you were complaining. It was odd though, especially on a Saturday afternoon. Normally the city would be alive and bustling with people shopping and spending time with friends or family, but today seemed to be an exception.

  
After a good few minutes of navigating through the streets and roads of Vale, you approached Sapphire’s Art Emporium. Entering the familiar shop, you found that no one was inside- besides the owner of the store, that is. She smiled brightly when you entered, happily greeting you as you looked around. Nothing about the store changed, all the products were in the same places they were the last time you visited.

  
“Is there anything specific you’re looking for?” Sapphire asked, walking around the counter she previously stood behind to approach you.

  
“Not really, no.” You responded. Pausing, you looked down into your bag and retrieved the small box containing the sapphire necklace. “…I actually just came by to give you something."

  
Sapphire tilted her head slightly, her tail twitching as her bright blue eyes widened with curiosity. You handed her the box, which she took carefully in her slim hands. Taking a few moments to examine the dark navy box, she opened it to reveal the silver and sapphire necklace inside.

  
Her eyes widened more as she gasped, covering her mouth with one of her hands.

  
“I know we’ve only seen each other once…” You muttered, somewhat awkward. “But I couldn’t help but think of you when I saw that.”

  
“It’s beautiful…” She said, her voice barely above a whisper. “Thank you so much!”

  
She gave you a huge grin before setting the box down on the counter behind her. Taking the necklace out of the box, she placed it around her neck and clipped the chain behind the necklace, keeping it secure from falling off.

  
“You’re too kind…” She giggled, “First you save me from getting assaulted, and then you go and get me a gift. If anything, I should be the one giving you presents!”

  
You smiled softly at her before you spoke.

  
“It’s really nothing. You didn’t deserve to be treated like that; I just did what any decent person should.”

  
“Well, it may be nothing to you, but it means the world for me. Here, it’s not much, but I have a new set of brushes that you can have.” She hurried behind the counter and opened a drawer, retrieving a package of paint brushes and handed them to you. “Don’t worry about paying, it’s on the house.”

  
You gratefully took the set of brushes, putting them in your bag along with your newly bought clothes. You wound up talking to her, and staying in the shop for much longer than you had initially anticipated. The conversation varied from art and mediums to more personal topics such as family. Apparently, she came from a small family from Menagerie; living with her two mothers and her brother. Although you wanted to be honest with her, you kept your own background vague, simply stating that you lived in a small village in Sanus with your parents.

  
Once you realized it was about time for you to get back to Beacon, you exchanged contact information and bid farewell as you made your way to your shuttle back to the school.

  
Your shopping had been done last-minute as the dance was scheduled to take place at 8:00pm to 1:00am this evening. Apparently team MOUN had planned it, and according to rumours they had even managed to hire a live performance by Topaz Hall. You weren’t too sure who that was, but from how excited everyone was about him, you guessed he was a well-known performer of some sort.

  
It was 7:15 by the time you got back to Beacon, which gave you less than an hour to get ready and make it to the dance on time. You didn’t take long to get ready, quickly slipping into your new clothes and tidying up a bit to make yourself presentable. Knowing that the building would be warm with the many students and teachers attending the dance, you rolled up your sleeves to help keep cool. Taking one last look in the mirror before deeming yourself ready to go, you glanced at the time and found that you had twelve minutes until the dance started.

  
It wouldn’t take more than seven minutes to walk down to the dance, so you decided to take your time and go a longer route. You walked through the hallways at a leisurely pace, before stepping out onto a nearby balcony and looked out at the sky. The fragmented moon illuminated the twilit sky, stars twinkling lightly as the last few rays of sunlight dipped below the horizon.

  
“You clean up quite nicely.”

  
Ozpin’s voice surprised you, jolting you out of your daydreams. Turning around to face the headmaster, you found that he wore the same clothes he did every day. Recollecting yourself, you took a deep breath to steady your racing heart as he approached you. Standing beside you, he leaned against the stone railing of the balcony and looked down. You could see the dance from up here.

  
You soon found yourself relaxing, resting your arms on the rail and taking comfort in Ozpin’s calm aura. Stars slowly blinked to life as the light of day faded completely, painting the dark sky with brilliant specks of bright light. The peaceful silence remained for a few minutes before Ozpin spoke.

  
“I understand why you dislike crowds and social events,” He said, “But it’s only boring if you don’t make an effort to enjoy yourself.”

  
You looked down from the night sky to the dance taking place below, watching as students and staff alike enters enthusiastically.

  
“I suppose…” You muttered.

  
You tensed slightly when you felt a hand place itself on your shoulder. Looking up at Ozpin, you found yourself staring into his warm brown eyes. You could’ve sworn you felt your heart skip a beat as he softly smiled at you, your cheeks heating up slightly.

  
“Instead of watching everyone have fun, why don’t we join them?” He suggested. You nodded in response as he removed his hand from his shoulder and turned around, waiting for you before you both made your way to the dance. Neither of you spoke much as you walked together, your heart still racing despite your attempts to calm yourself. If anything, it gradually sped up even more as you entered the dance.

  
Students hopped and danced along to the upbeat music, laughing and yelling excitedly to each other. You remained by Ozpin’s side, walking around the mass of dancing teenagers in the middle of the room. You had spotted Glynda across the room, talking to Professor Plum. Peter had caught sight of you and approached you, starting conversation.

  
“Team MOUN did an excellent job with the dance this year,” he spoke above the music, “Though I'm definitely curious as to how they managed to get Topaz to perform here.”

  
“Why not ask them yourself?” You responded, pointing to the second-year team currently situated by the refreshments. Looking over to the students in question, he started towards them and struck up a conversation with them. You smiled as you watched their expressions, as the music was much too loud for you to hear what they were talking about.

  
You spent the entire night at Ozpin’s side, occasionally speaking with other staff members and students (and scolding Qrow for attempting to spike the punch with alcohol he somehow managed to smuggle in). Near the end of the night, the excitement died down as everyone began to grow tired; some even retired to their dorms early.

  
As the last song of the night, Topaz began singing a slow song, “for all the young lovebirds out there”. You swayed slightly as you listened to the song. It was calm yet upbeat, and you hummed quietly to the tune. However, your attention was brought back to Ozpin as he spoke.

  
“Would you care for a dance?” He calmly tilted his head to look at you as your breath caught in your throat.

  
You were definitely not prepared for that question.

  
“I, uh…” You stuttered, feeling your face heat up as you tried to think of something to say. “I’m… not good at dancing…”

  
A poor excuse, but it was all you could say. Ozpin simply smiled at your response.

  
“If you think about it, dancing and fighting aren’t too different.” Ozpin replied, “Two partners, interlocked… Of course, a mistake on the dance floor merely results in a sore foot. I’ve seen you fight firsthand, and with the grace you hold yourself with, I can most definitely assure you that you can dance better than you think you can.”

  
Your heart was racing once more, beating so hard you were sure that it would break through your rib cage. Your mind raced until you swallowed your anxiety and came to a decision.

  
“Okay, sure. But don’t blame me if I step on your foot.”

  
Placing your hand in his, you let him take the lead as the two of you swayed gently to the rhythm of the music. Gradually gaining confidence as the song went on, you started twirling and swinging around to the beat until your surroundings faded from your mind. You smiled as you danced elegantly around each other in perfect sync, until the song eventually came to a close and you ended in each other’s arms.

  
You both snapped back as you realized that you had attracted a crowd, students surrounding and watching your performance. You felt your cheeks begin to burn once more as you stepped away from Ozpin, coughing awkwardly.

  
You could hear Topaz laugh from the stage before thanking Beacon for having him and wishing everyone a good night. The staff ushered the remaining students to their dorms as the clean-up crew began sweeping and picking up any litter. You watched the students leave and helped tidy up before retreating to your own room, thanking the clean-up crew for their help and wishing the remaining staff a good night.

  
You hadn’t realized just how exhausted you were until you entered you room. Dragging your feet across the carpet, you slipped out of your dress clothes, throwing them in your dirty laundry pile and putting on a pair of loose pajama pants. You collapsed into your bed, pulling the covers up over your shoulders and expected to fall asleep near instantly.

  
However, that wasn’t the case. Despite being utterly exhausted and drained of energy, your mind raced as you thought about what had happened earlier that night. Just thinking about how close you had been to Ozpin made your face red and your heart flutter. You buried your face into your pillow, trying to smother your thoughts away so you could rest, but they refused to go away.

  
It took a long time, but you finally fell asleep, dreaming about the events that had recently took place.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bonus points to anyone who can guess who Topaz is based off of ;)


	13. Simple Mistakes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While you spend an evening in the city with Sapphire, Ozpin ponders upon his decisions.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is kind of short, but I promise the next one will not only be longer, but much more exciting ;)
> 
> (Also sorry if this chapter is kinda all over the place, I had trouble getting my thoughts down into proper, meaningful words)

There were no classes scheduled for the week after the dance to give students time to prepare for their upcoming missions. You were assigned a mission yourself, a simple one for you to assess a first-year team in the field. It was nothing too difficult; a small swarm of lancers had nested a little too close to an occupied town, and was causing trouble for the inhabitants. Your job was to escort the team who chose your mission and ensure their safety while disposing of the grimm creatures.

  
As it was your first time on a mission since you began teaching, Ozpin was required to accompany you and assess your performance in the field. Normally you would be indifferent to something like this, but both of you hadn't spoken to each other since the night of the dance. The lack of communication made you anxious, and the lingering thought that you may have done something wrong made your stomach twist into a knot.

  
Was it inappropriate for you to have accepted his invitation? You couldn't think of why such a thing was wrong, as he had been rather insistent on dancing with you. You had fun, despite the awkward atmosphere following the end of the song. Was he upset with you? Did he find out more about what you had done while under Salem's control?

  
You sighed, then refocused your attention on your sketch of the Emerald Forest. You gently shaded the leaves of the green trees, until your scroll notified you of a new message. Setting down your pencil, you picked up your scroll to read the message, finding that it was sent from Sapphire.

  
_'Not many customers today so I closed shop early. Wanna have grab a drink with me tonight?'_

  
You pondered the idea for a moment. You could always finish your drawing another time, and you were already prepared for your mission- of which you were arranged to leave for in two days. You hadn't been doing much lately, so you figured you might as well go out for the evening. Not that you planned on drinking; you weren't too fond of alcohol, though you figured you should at least accompany Sapphire and make sure she stayed safe.

  
_'Sounds good. I'll meet you at your shop around 6:30'_

  
You closed your sketchbook and put your pencils away. Washing the graphite off of your hands, you got ready to leave for the city and made your way toward the departing shuttles.

  
Ozpin watched you leave from his office in the top of the tower, absentmindedly sipping on the mug of hot chocolate he held in is hand. The clockwork gears above his head turned and ticked, ensuring that silence never lasted for more than a second at a time. His gaze lingered on your figure, soon disappearing from his sight as the door to the airship you boarded closed behind you and flew off to the city.

  
He brought his mug up to his lips once more, only to find it empty. Upon realising this, he turned to his kettle, pouring himself another cup of the warm chocolaty liquid. He mentally sighed at himself, setting both the kettle and mug down on the table top. He closed his eyes, scolding himself as the thought of you invaded his mind.

  
He was no stranger to this feeling. By now, one would think he would be used to it and managed to ignore the fluttery feeling in his chest and the quickened pace in his heart. Unfortunately for him, that wasn't the case.

  
He took a deep breath, pinching the bridge on his nose. He had no doubt that recruiting you was highly beneficial to both you and all of Remnant. However, it might not have been so beneficial to him personally.

  
When he had first met you- when he first looked into your glowing silver eyes, he was entranced and fascinated by you. At first he brushed it off as simple curiosity, but now it was apparent to him that that was a lie he had told himself, and he fell for it.

  
He fell for you.

  
He should have known better than to act on his feelings, to ask you to dance. Now the thought of you, your smiling face and elegant movements plagued his mind so much so that he had trouble concentrating on anything else. It was one simple gesture, one short dance, but it was another mistake to add to the list.

  
Ozpin was well aware of the consequences he would face if he acted upon his feelings; he's seen it happen time and time again in his earliest years of reincarnation. Though it seemed this time was somewhat different.

  
In his past lifetimes, he managed to keep these feelings buried deep down, should they ever develop for someone. But this time, he couldn't seem to suppress these feelings for you. You were different, and everything about you was perfect in his eyes. He loved you, and he hated himself for feeling that way.

  
You deserved so much more than he would be able to give you. Someone younger, someone kinder, someone trustworthy, someone wiser, someone less broken.

  
Someone better than him.

  
Standing up straight, he took his mug of hot chocolate and made his way to his desk, sitting back in his chair. Placing the mug down, he brought up the status of all the missions the first-year students had signed up for in hopes of distracting himself from his previous thoughts. His eyes skimmed over the team names and mission classifications, before landing on the team that had signed up for yours.

  
Team STRQ... Well, at least the oncoming mission would surely be exciting. 


	14. Out of Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After watching Team STRQ take care of the lancers terrorizing a nearby town, you set off to see some familiar faces.

Dealing with lancers wasn't very difficult. Team STRQ worked extraordinarily well together, all four students being quick on their feet and not hesitating for a moment. Summer made good use of her silver eyes; she didn't overuse them, and utilized their power only when necessary.

  
Such as when they had to take down the queen lancer- that was a fight you weren't going to forget.

  
The way each person used their semblance was extremely clever, especially Qrow. His team seemed to know just when his bad luck would act up, and would take advantage of it- steering clear of him and making sure he was close to the grimm creature to ensure that it worked in their favour.

  
You definitely had high hopes for these students. Despite their shortcomings, they fought well and displayed remarkable teamwork.

  
Throughout their battle, however, you couldn't shake the feeling of dead looming over you. Something didn't feel right, and by the time you finally realized what was wrong, it was too late.

  
Not long after team STRQ had defeated the queen lancer, you saw it. Hiding among the tall trees and rocky landscape was the unmistakable appearance of a seer.

  
Salem knew where you were. She had been watching the entire time, and she knew that you were with Ozpin.

  
You wanted to cry. You wanted to scream and run away, but this was something you couldn't run from.

  
You remained silent as everyone returned to the town to confirm that the mission was a success, and all nearby grimm were taken care of. Ozpin walked by your side, watching the four students chatter excitedly about the recent events that had just taken place. He seemed aware of your sudden change in attitude, and waited until he knew team STRQ's attention was far from being focused on you.

  
"Are you alright?" He asked, placing a hand on your shoulder. You flinched slightly at the gesture, which only added more to his concern. You weren't normally this... jumpy.

  
"Yeah, yeah... I'm alright." You answered, "Just a little tired, is all." A weak excuse, but you hoped it would work nonetheless. Ozpin didn't seem convinced in the slightest, but he dropped the subject as you approached the town, removing his hand from your shoulder.

  
The townsfolk were thrilled when you returned with the good news, and offered to let you stay the night. The four students seemed quite exhausted, so you accepted their offer and let them explore the town on their own time- as long as they returned to the inn by sunset.

  
You, on the other hand, had no intent on staying put inside the town. If Salem knew where you were, then this town -and the people in it- were in danger as long as you were around. You had no intent on letting innocent people die because you were careless.

  
Ozpin, of course, seemed to know exactly what you were thinking as you clipped Whiplash to your waist and put your dagger in its scabbard on your thigh.

  
"Where are you going?" He asked, resting both hands on his cane and staring intently at you with a skeptical gaze. You hesitated for a moment before giving a vague answer.

  
"Out." You muttered. Ozpin tilted his head, expecting you to elaborate on the topic. "I just need to go check something out, I'll be back in an hour. Two hours at latest."

  
"(y/n)..." Ozpin took a few steps closer, "Are you okay?"

  
You were well aware of the implications behind his words- _Does she know about you? Did she find you? Are you safe?_

  
Meeting his gaze, you could feel the uncertainty show on your face. You wanted to tell him that you were far from okay, that you were definitely not safe.

  
"Yeah." You lied, turning away to make your way toward the town's entrance.

  
Ozpin remained silent as you walked away, staring at your retreating figure. He knew something was wrong, that something was definitely bothering you. But he trusted you to make the right choice. You've grown immensely since you first met, and he was confident in your decision making ability.

  
If only he'd have known how much he would regret letting you leave.

 

 

You walked quickly down the gravel path, putting as much distance between you and the town as possible. You were no more than five kilometers down the path until you approached the seer that had been watching you earlier. With a swift glare from your silver eyes, it was vapourized in an instant.

  
The sound of footsteps approaching behind you made you turn around, drawing your dagger and blocking an attack from a familiar scorpion faunus. His cheshire grin ever present on his face, just as you remembered.

  
"Long time no see, (y/n)!" He said, leaning into your dagger before you brought your leg up and kicked his abdomen, pushing him away.

  
Sheathing your dagger, you retrieved your whip and extended it, swinging it at him. He jumped over your attack, pointing his weapon at you and shooting several shots- all of which you managed to deflect with your aura. Activating the ice dust in your whip, you ran forward the moment his shots ceased and swung Whiplash at his feet. Tyrian leaped up again to avoid being frozen to the ground, but was a second too slow to avoid getting caught by you, who had swung at him once more when he dodged your first attack. Your whip wrapped around his waist, and the next thing he knew, he was plummeted into the ground, electricity coursing through his body as you used your lightning dust for good measure.

  
He remained unmoving after the harsh treatment, but it seemed you weren't finished as you heard a second set of footsteps behind you once more.

  
Turning and swinging at the new opponent, Cinder ducked and rolled under your whip before standing and drawing her bow. Once she let her arrows fly, you deflected the oncoming projectiles with your whip, rendering them useless as they fell to the ground. Running toward her, you swung again, managing to wrap Whiplash around her wrist and send her crashing into a nearby boulder.

  
You retracted Whiplash away from her before extending the weapon again to swing at Tyrian, who had gotten up to his feet. However, he hadn't expected you to attack him again so soon, and you landed a deep gash on his stomach. Recoiling from the hit, you took the chance to advance and land another few hits on his chest before he could recover and counter.

  
The wounds on his abdomen bled profusely as his blue aura flickered, already drained from the unbalanced battle. He remained doubled over on the ground, his hands covering the slashes as he tried to stop them from bleeding.

  
Before you could turn and face Cinder, three arrows landed at your feet. Looking down and seeing the amber glow, you jumped back from them as they exploded, the force of which sent you sprawling to the ground. Before you could regain your posture, an arrow pierced your left arm.

  
Getting to your feet, you faced Cinder as you pulled the arrow from your arm. Your aura immediately healed the puncture wound, leaving nothing but a faint scar.

  
You immediately charged forward, Cinder meeting you halfway as the two of you exchanged blows. Swinging and stabbing at each other with extreme speed, you both dodged and blocked the other's attacks equally.

  
But for a split second, Cinder was unguarded and focused solely on your whip. Taking advantage and acting quick, you wasted no time drawing your dagger in your left hand, and plunging it into the right side of her abdomen. She froze in shock, staring at you with wide amber eyes before you pulled the dagger from her flesh and knocked her back with a swift punch in her chest. Her orange aura flickering over her body as the hit the ground, falling unconscious.

  
You panted heavily, retracting Whiplash and clipping the weapon back on your waist before placing the dagger in your right hand. You approached her limp body, standing over her you noticed that she was still breathing.

  
_Not for long,_ you thought, raising your dagger and aiming for her throat.

  
Before you could take her life, however, several shots rang through air as you felt an immense pain wrack though your body. Your (colour) aura flickered as you looked back to see Tyrian aiming his weapon at you. A metallic tang could be tasted on your tongue as you coughed, knees buckling beneath you.

  
You gasped for air as you heard light footsteps walk gracefully toward you. You didn't have to look up to know who it was.

  
"I warned you, (y/n)." Salem spoke, standing in front of your kneeling form. Her pale hand hovered over Cinder's body for a few moments, healing the near-fatal wound you gave her.

  
"I gave you so many opportunities to redeem yourself," She continued, staring down at you with her piercing red eyes. "You've disappointed me."

  
You felt your heart beat against your ribs, and you could hear it in your ears. You felt tears prick your eyes as you realized that you had lost, and this would be your end. You blinked those tears away, refusing to let her see you cry. If these were your final moments, then you'd make them count.

  
You gripped the dagger in your hand, willing yourself to move. Before you could raise the dagger in your hand, a black blade sliced through your hand and dug into the soil beneath it, forcing you to drop it. You let out a pained cry as your body could do nothing to heal the wounds inflicted upon you.

  
You felt her cold fingers caress your jawline before tilting your head up so you could look her in the eye.

  
"Don't worry, I won't kill you." She spoke softly, "Yet."

  
You narrowed your eyes, not liking whatever it was she had planned. Suddenly, she jerked your head to the side, exposing the left side of your neck. You shivered slightly as her other hand rested against the sensitive skin. After a few moments, she let go of your neck and watched you.

  
You soon felt something small crawling on your skin. The creature was extremely small, and couldn't be any bigger than a fingernail. The creature stopped crawling, and you immediately felt an agonizing pain from where it was. You let out a bloodcurdling scream as darkness soon overtook your vision. You tried to stay conscious, blinking away the blackness in the corners of your eyes, but it was all in vain.

  
All you could remember was pain, and then nothing.


	15. Still Alive

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Not long after you left town, Ozpin and Team STRQ search for you after Summer has a disturbing vision. They find you alive, but you're not quite the same...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Because Summer's semblance hasn't been revealed, I sorta came up with the idea that it's future vision. She can't exactly control what visions she has or when she has them. I'll go into more details about her semblance in the end of chapter notes
> 
> (Tip: listen to "Home" from the volume 4 ost near the end of the chapter to make it even more emotional)

Ozpin wasn't fond of the thought of you leaving, especially on your own. It was clear to him that something was wrong, and whatever was bothering you was definitely important. But if you insisted that you were fine alone, he wouldn't press any further.

  
Instead, he wandered the streets of the town, occasionally looking through the windows of various shops and stores. The town was lively as people crowded along the streets, talking and greeting others with cheerful smiles. It was a nice place to be, and he could understand why the people were worried about the nearby nest of lancers disrupting their peaceful town.

  
Eventually, he came upon what looked like the town square. A large fountain was in the center, with several pinewood benches placed around it. Families and couples sat among them, happily chatting to one another while children watched the goldfish swim around in the base layer of the fountain. Sometimes a fish would leap up out of the water, much to the children's delight.

  
He smiled contently as he watched the scene in front of him. _This_ was what being a huntsman was about. Protecting the precious families and innocent children from the dangers of the grimm world. He may have been cursed to live through one disaster after another, but it was peaceful moments like this that made his endless life cycles worth living.

  
But as always, the peace never lasted.

  
"Professor Ozpin!" Summer's voice cut through the air as she ran towards him, seemingly panicked and out of breath. This caught his attention immediately.

  
"Miss Rose? Is everything alright?" He asked, knowing full well the answer to the question.

  
"Where's Professor (y/n)?" She responded, not bothering to answer him.

  
"He left town." He stated. Her eye widened at his answer, tears forming in her eyes. Concerned, Ozpin started to lead her away from the public area and walk slowly towards the inn. Before he could ask what was wrong, she spoke up.

  
"I-I had a vision..." Her voice cracked as tears gently fell down her cheeks. "There was a strange woman, and she was hurting Professor (y/n)..."

  
At this, the headmaster stopped walking. He didn't have to question her for a more detailed description on the "strange woman" to know that she was Salem.

  
"Go get the others." He said. Summer nodded at him, wiping her tears away and running off as her white cloak trailed behind her. He was hesitant to get his students involved, but he couldn't repeat your mistake and venture off on his own.

  
He walked hastily toward the town entrance, staring down the path he had previously watched you walk down no more than thirty minutes ago. Within a few moments, Summer, Taiyang, Raven, and Qrow had joined him.

  
"Summer told us about her vision," Taiyang spoke up, "Is Professor (y/n) alright?"

  
"I'm afraid I can't be sure until we find him," He answered, "I understand you must be tired after your fight with the grimm. If you wish to remain here and rest, you may."

  
The four students remained silent as they stood their ground. After none of them showed any desire to abandon their teacher, they set off down the path. All five of them ran quickly, adrenaline overriding the fatigue from the previous battle.

  
After a good sixteen minutes of running down the path, Ozpin slowed to a stop. The students halted behind him as their headmaster listened carefully. In the distance, he could hear someone screaming. That someone was undoubtedly you.

  
With that, they set off again with urgency. Your screams slowly got louder the closer they got, until the sound of your screams stopped abruptly. Ozpin felt his heart drop at the eerie silence, dread hanging over them all like a heavy blanket.

  
"Do you think he...?" Summer muttered, hesitant to finish her sentence.

  
"No," Qrow responded, "Don't you remember when he showed up during combat practice? He took on our entire class without a problem."

  
Raven joined their conversation, "Whoever it was that he was up against, she sure as dust wasn't a student."

  
Catching sight of a figure in the middle of the path, Ozpin stopped. The figure stood a good fifteen meters away, but he could easily see who it was.

  
"Professor (y/n)?" Taiyang said, stepping forward. As he did so, Ozpin held his arm out to stop him from advancing.

  
"Wait." Was all he said to the young huntsman. Something wasn't quite right.

  
You stood tall, facing the opposite direction so none of them could see your face. If he looked closely though, he could just make out the torn fabric of your clothes, stained with blood. From the size and shape of the tears, it was clear that they had been made by bullets. However, despite the bloodstains, it appeared that you were no longer bleeding. Whatever wounds you had before seemed to have healed.

  
Keeping his cane at the ready, he slowly stepped forward, his shoes scraping against the gravel. The students behind him remained still, watching intently has their headmaster approached you. Suddenly, after a few steps, you turned your head to look back at him. At that, he stopped in his tracks as his eyes widened.

  
The whites of your eyes were now black, dark maroon markings framed your face and ran down your neck. You turned you body around to face him completely, unclipping Whiplash from your waist and extending the weapon.

  
"(y/n)..." He whispered. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. How did this happen to you? _Why did he let this happen to you?_

  
Wordlessly, you rushed forward, swinging at him with speed and power you hadn't had before. He could just barely defend himself against your attacks, and you left no opening to retaliate.

  
Watching as their headmaster became overwhelmed, team STRQ readied their weapons and joined the battle. Unfortunately, none of them stood a chance against you in your strange state.

  
Drawing your dagger to block Ozpin's cane, you activated your fire dust and swung at offending students, landing severe burns on Taiyang and Qrow. You turned and pushed Ozpin away, before focusing your attention on the two unharmed students.

  
Ozpin, knowing that the possibility of the huntresses' deaths was significantly high, focused his aura into his cane before thrusting it into the ground. A glowing green light traveled through the gravel path toward Summer and Raven before protecting them both with a wide emerald force field.

  
The moment your whip made contact with the barrier, you were thrown back by the energy radiating from it. Once you were a good distance away from the two huntresses, Ozpin cut off the flow of his aura to them, the shield disappearing. He quickly went to their side, standing in front of them as you regained your posture.

  
Taiyang and Qrow slowly got to their feet, their auras slowly healing their burns.

  
Ozpin narrowed his eyes at you. You movements were clearly not your own, you didn't move like you normally would. You were never this hostile; save for when you two had first met. There wasn't a doubt in his mind that Salem was responsible for this, but he wasn't sure exactly _how_ she did this.

  
Unfortunately, he didn't have time to think too much on the subject. You immediately sprung forward, ready for a fight.

  
Summer suddenly perked up before Ozpin could make a move to counter whatever attack you were planning.

  
"Qrow, now!" She spoke firmly. Taking the hint, Qrow took the lead and ran forward to meet you.

  
Ozpin watched as Qrow seamlessly rolled under your whip as you swung at him, grazing the fabric of his cape. He stood up as you swung again, this time snagging Whiplash on his wrist. You jerked the whip back, forcing him to drop his weapon. Before you could throw him or activate any dust, however, he gripped the whip with both hands and planted his feet into the ground.

  
"Raven!" He shouted. Answering to her brother, she ran forward and leaped up over Qrow. Drawing a maroon blade, she dug her sword into a weaker point in the whip and sliced your weapon in half, freeing Qrow from your hold.

  
You threw what was left of the broken whip to the side, readying your dagger instead. Rushing at Raven, you swung your blade fiercely at her.

  
Ozpin watched intently, suddenly noticing something odd on the left side of your neck. He couldn't see exactly what it was, but it definitely looked grimm in appearance. He turned to Summer as an idea formed in his mind.

  
"Do you have any ice dust?" He asked. Summer nodded, retrieving a vial of powdered ice dust from her pocket and handing it to Ozpin. "When I say so, use your silver eyes to their fullest extent." Summer nodded as he took the vial in his hands, then stepped forward as both Raven and Qrow were thrown back.

  
He had noticed that during your entire fight, you refrained from utilizing aura and your silver eyes. Now he knew why.

  
Opening the vial of powdered dust, he swung the vial so the powder spilled in the air in front of him. Upon activating the dust, shards of ice formed midair and were sent flying at you. As expected, you blocked each ice shard with your dagger. While you were distracted, however, Ozpin appeared behind you, and used what was left of the ice dust to freeze you to the ground. He jumped back when you swung at him with your dagger, then called for Summer.

  
Summer stepped forward and faced you, her silver eyes shining with determination. Ozpin quickly got out of the way as a bright white light enveloped the area. Using his aura to protect him, Ozpin watched as the dark red markings faded from your skin, and the small grimm creature on your neck evaporated.

  
When the light finally died down, both you and Summer collapsed. Taiyang was by her side immediately, catching her as she fell and ensuring that she was okay. Raven and Qrow joined him, tending to each other's wounds as Ozpin approached your unconscious body. STRQ's attention was drawn to you as the headmaster leaned down and placed his fingers gently on your neck, checking for a heartbeat.

  
It was faint, but it was there.

  
After making sure you were breathing as well, he looked to his students.

  
"I need one of you to call for an emergency pick-up. Send them our coordinates and request medical assistance."

  
After Taiyang nodded and opened his scroll, Ozpin turned his attention back to you. You had absolutely no aura left, and if you weren't treated soon, you had little chances of survival.

  
Carefully, he placed the palms of his hands of your chest, and focused his aura on replenishing yours.

  
"What was that?" Raven asked as she approached. Qrow was tending to Summer, and Taiyang was busy relaying information through his scroll. "That thing... that wasn't like any grimm creature we've seen before."

  
"I can't say that I know what it was," Ozpin answered, "But I believe it was a parasite."

  
"But can't Professor (y/n) control grimm? How did it-"

  
"Miss Branwen, _please,_ " Ozpin wasn't exactly irritated, but he definitely wasn't in the mood to talk at the moment. "I'm afraid I'll have to answer your questions later. This is a particularly delicate procedure. If I make even one mistake, (y/n) will die."

  
He wasn't lying, really. Aura transfusion was a method that took a lot of focus and patience. A single slip-up could fracture one's very soul. While he had mastered the practice long ago, he didn't want to take any risks with someone's life on the line, especially yours.

  
Your cold, clammy skin slowly returned to its healthy colour as time went on. You breathing improved, and your heart beat in a steady rhythm. It took a few hours for the emergency E-vac to find you, but at that point, nobody cared. Everyone was safe, and you were alive.

  
The paramedics set you on a stretcher, carrying you onto the airship carefully. Ozpin watched team STRQ climb on behind them, and looked out at the woods before boarding the airship himself. He could've sworn he saw a pair of glowing red eyes in the bushes...

  
Deciding not to dwell on it, he stood on the edge of the open door as the airship took off, watching the nearby town slowly faded in the distance as they left. He held onto the door frame to stay secure, leaning slightly on his right leg as the lush forest passed below them. He could faintly hear the paramedics talk to one another in the background, and team STRQ chatting amongst themselves.

  
After a while, it got quiet. Glancing over at the four students, he found that they had all fallen asleep. A few of the paramedics gave them blankets, and offered him one- which he politely declined. He turned his attention back outside, the sun that was once high in the sky slowly descended to the horizon.

  
Suddenly, he felt a hand on his shoulder. Looking over, he was surprised to see your tired silver eyes looking up at him. He smiled as you stood beside him, a wool blanket wrapped around your shoulders. You quietly watched the landscape pass by, until Ozpin broke the silence.

  
"You gave us quite the fright, you know." He stated simply, his gaze never leaving the outside scenery. You hummed in response, leaning your head against his shoulder lightly.

  
"I'm sorry." Your voice was hoarse as you spoke. After clearing your throat, you spoke again with more clarity. "I knew she was watching me. I knew I'd fail, but I just didn't know she'd... Gods, Ozpin, I'm so sorry."

  
Whatever it was that she had done to you, it was clear that you had been somewhat conscious of what had happened when he and team STRQ had found you. Though he had many questions for you, he decided that they could wait.

  
"It's alright," he said, gently guiding you to sit down as he seated himself beside you. His legs hung from the aircraft, as did yours. "You're not to blame. You only did what you thought was right."

  
You leaned on Ozpin, obviously exhausted despite having been unconscious for the past few hours. Sighing, the wizard wrapped his arm around your waist, keeping you close as he spoke again.

  
"Next time, I want you to tell me if something's bothering you."

  
You simply hummed in response once more, slowly falling asleep. Ozpin said nothing more as the kingdom of Vale appeared in the distance through the mist and mountains. He would worry about Salem and talk about the recent events with you at a later date. Right now, he was focused on you.

  
You were safe and sound by his side, your head resting on his shoulder and (colour) hair gently brushing against the skin of his cheek. Ozpin sighed contently, leaning his head gently over yours.

  
He was pleased simply knowing that you were still alive.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so Summer never managed to unlock her semblance throughout combat school. She didn't even have it unlocked when she applied for Beacon. It wasn't until she was visiting her friend at Snowpeak when, late at night while trying to sleep, she had a vision of a nevermore eating her father- something she brushes off as a nightmare. But (as we all know) August wound up missing and after a few more random visions (some good, some bad) she realizes that her semblance is future vision. She can't exactly control when she has a vision, or what her vision will be of. It just kinda happens. I might write a short story about her and her semblance as a little side thing, but for now I want to focus on this story; but be sure to let me know if you want to read something like that, I'd definitely post it after I'm finished this fic if anyone's interested!


	16. A Much Needed Talk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Upon returning from your mission, you find yourself having a hard time resting. Hoping to put your mind at ease, Ozpin calls you to his office to speak with you.

The day after you returned from the mission, Professor Ozpin insisted that you take at least a three days' break from teaching. Apparently, he had spoken to Peter over his scroll on the way back to Vale, and the T.A. had assured the headmaster that he would be more than willing to cover your classes. You had argued that you were fine, and you would be completely recovered by the next morning, but Ozpin insisted that you took the time to rest.

  
Perhaps it was for the best. Despite the fact that your aura was steadily replenishing and your physical wounds were healed, you were far from mentally stable enough to go back to teaching classes. It was obvious to anyone who knew you that you were nervous, constantly looking over your shoulder when things got too quiet and making a point to always be overly conscious of your surroundings. Even when you returned to Beacon, you were shaken and unnerved.

  
After witnessing your sudden change in behavior, Ozpin decided to speak with you personally. On the second day of your break, he called you to his office to meet with you once he was finished debriefing team STRQ and ensured that the details of what happened with you remained secret; the only one to be informed of the incident was Glynda.

  
The elevator door opened and you stepped out into Ozpin's office, team STRQ ending their conversation with the headmaster and taking your place in the elevator to return to class. Once the elevator door closed behind you, Ozpin stood from his seat, pouring himself a mug of hot chocolate before speaking.

  
"Would you care for a cup?" He asked, offering you a mug of the warm beverage.

  
"Yeah... thanks." You spoke quietly, taking the mug from his hands and taking a sip. It was a pleasant taste- not too sweet, but sweet enough to refrain from being bitter on one's tongue.

  
Ozpin then gestured to a chair placed in front of his desk before seating himself.

  
"Please, take a seat."

  
Approaching the chair and sitting down, you stared down into your mug of hot chocolate. Despite the warmth of the beverage, your hands trembled slightly as you held it gently in both hands. You took a deep breath, trying to calm yourself before looking up and meeting Ozpin's concerned gaze.

  
He stared at you intently, taking note of the dark circles under your eyes. It was quite obvious that you hadn't managed to get a proper night's rest since you returned to Beacon. He took a sip from his mug before speaking once more, choosing his words carefully.

  
"What happened to you when you left?"

  
You remained silent for a fer moments, mulling over your thoughts.

  
"...I was ambushed by two of her followers." You said, sipping from your own cup before continuing. "They caught me off-guard..."

  
You closed your eyes, replaying the memory in your mind.

  
"She appeared when I couldn't fight back, and put that grimm creature on my neck. I remember blacking out, and... the next thing I knew, I was attacking you.

  
"I couldn't... I had no control over my body. It was like I was moving on my own, and all I could do was watch." Your grip tightened on your mug as you turned your gaze away from Ozpin, "I know I should've told you, but... I didn't want to get you involved in my problems."

  
Silence hung in the air, the ticking of the clockwork gears above doing nothing to soothe the deafening quiet. It was interrupted, however, when you heard Ozpin chuckle. Confused, you looked up to see that he was, in fact, smiling and laughing quietly. He stopped, sighing softly before speaking.

  
"While I definitely appreciate your concern, I'm afraid it's quite unnecessary." His warm brown gaze looked deep into your silver eyes, and you immediately felt your face flush.

  
"I understand that you feel as though Salem is your responsibility," He continued, "But I can assure you that's not the case. You won't get far by taking on this responsibility alone- you have friends here that are willing to help you no matter what, and I advise that you put more trust in them. You don't have to fight alone, (y/n)."

  
You weren't sure what to say, or how to respond. You simply nodded, drinking your hot chocolate as you processed his words. Your thoughts lingered on Glynda and Peter, and their willingness to aid you and help you as you struggled with adapting to your new life at Beacon Academy. They were nothing but supportive of you, even if they were in rather... different ways.

  
You were suddenly pulled from your thoughts when you felt a thumb gently wipe away your tears. You were so deep in thought that you hadn't realized that you were crying, and you hadn't noticed Ozpin get up and approach you.

  
You sighed, closing your eyes and wiping your cheeks with the back of your hand. Ozpin stood up straight, waiting for you to recompose yourself. He was quite surprised however, when you looked up at him with a bright, wide smile.

  
"You're much too kind, Ozpin." You said, getting up out of your seat. Noticing that you had finished your drink, Ozpin took the empty cup from you and set it on his desk behind him.

  
"Is there anything else you'd like to tell me?" He asked.

  
"Well..." You thought for a few moments, "I actually have a question. It's been bugging me for a while, and... I'm not exactly convinced with the answer you gave me last time."

  
The calm and lighthearted atmosphere dissipated, replaced with a much more serious feeling in the air. The headmaster already knew exactly what you wanted to ask, but let you voice your concerns anyway.

  
"That mountain..." You began, turning your gaze to look out the window at the mountain in question. "It's not just a 'high population of grimm'. There's something _inside_ that mountain, something big. What is it?"

  
Ozpin nodded slowly, walking over to the windows, gazing out at the rocky peak beside Mountain Glenn. He was quiet, but began speaking as you approached him and stood by his side.

  
"The fall of Mountain Glenn attracted a great number of grimm," he said, "It began as one would expect. Smaller creatures of grimm were the first to appear, but the fear and panic of the people soon caught the attention of a much larger, and much deadlier grimm creature."

  
You listened intently to his words, watching the mountain as he spoke.

  
"A grimm dragon flew in from the west, laying waste to the entire kingdom."

  
Your eyes widened as he said that. Grimm dragons were one of Salem's most powerful creatures, and were extremely rare outside of her territory. You recalled a time when you first laid eyes upon one such great beast. You were far from frightened when you had first encountered it; if anything, you felt a great sense of admiration for the creature. It radiated power unlike any other grimm you had seen before.

  
You remembered clearly how the dragon obeyed your commands, allowing you on its back and soaring through the air faster than any other airborne creature. Dragons were by far your favourite grimm creature in all of Remnant.

  
"We had no silver-eyed huntsman at the time," Ozpin continued, "And I was only capable of so much. We were fortunate when the fall maiden had joined the battle, but even with her help, we couldn't kill it. Instead, we buried it beneath the mountain."

  
"What if it breaks free?" You asked. Ozpin took a deep breath before he spoke.

  
"The grimm dragon will remain dormant until it senses an high concentration of negative emotion." He explained, "We currently live in a time of peace. I wouldn't worry about it for a long time."

  
He looked down at you with a reassuring smile, and even though you had several other questions, you decided to leave it at that.

  
Nodding at him, you then turned to exit his office. You bid him a silent farewell as he watched you leave, pressing the button to call for the elevator.

  
To your surprise, there was no wait for the elevator as the doors opened immediately. Summer, Qrow, and Taiyang had been leaning against the elevator doors, and fell to the floor in front of you. Raven covered her face with her hand, muttering under her breath at her teammates.

  
"Uhh..." Summer looked up at you, then to the headmaster. "This isn't what it looks like?"

  
In response to her claim, you heard Ozpin let out an exasperated sigh behind you.


	17. Not Fall in Love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With the remaining day off, you decide to spend some time with Sapphire.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another short chapter, but I had fun with this one at least ^^

It was a beautiful, sunny day in the city of Vale as you and Sapphire walked the streets. It was your last day before you were return to teaching class, and you decided to visit the feline faunus and tell her most of what had happened. She listened intently to the details, her blue eyes sparkling in excitement.

  
After you filled her in on how your mission went, the conversation changed frequently. From favourite animals to interesting places you've traveled, Sapphire had suddenly brought up a topic that caught you off-guard.

  
"So... have you met anyone in Vale who's caught your eye?" She asked.

  
"...Huh?" You responded dumbly. You weren't exactly sure what she meant by "caught your eye". Luckily, she didn't hesitate to elaborate on the subject.

  
"You know, someone that's struck your fancy." She said, "Someone you wanna date."

  
You definitely weren't sure how to answer that. Engaging in a romantic relationship was the last thing you were worried about, even before you were taken in by Salem. Though it was most likely due to your isolation from the crowd, but at the same time, you never really thought about it- even after you started teaching at Beacon.

  
You thought over everyone you had met. Did you feel any romantic feelings towards any of them? Peter was a nice man, but he hadn't piqued your interest. Glynda was definitely capable and independent, but too stern for your liking. Professor Plum and Doctor Willow both seemed like nice people as well, but you had barely interacted with either of them enough to form a solid opinion on them.

  
Your mind came to a halt however, when the name of the school's headmaster invaded your thoughts. Just thinking about him made your heart race, and your mind trailed off as you thought about him.

  
He was kind and caring, but not too much as to be taken advantage of. His calm aura never ceased to make you feel at ease in his presence. You started thinking harder on the subject. Was this what Sapphire had been talking about? You were definitely more interested in him than anyone else you had ever met, and you weren't quite sure why. At first you figured it was because you were simply grateful; he had done so much to free you from Salem's hold, after all. But was it just that, or something more?

  
You were brought back from your train of thought by Sapphire, who smiled up at you mischievously.

  
"Ohhh, you're blushing!" She giggled, "Okay okay, who is it? What are they like?"

  
You brought a hand to your face, and sure enough, your cheeks were burning warm. You silently cursed yourself, before trying to come up with an answer.

  
"Well, I'm not sure if you'd say he's caught my eye exactly." You rubbed the back of your neck awkwardly, "He's just done a lot for me and I'm thankful, is all."

  
Sapphire laughed at that, crossing her arms. "Alright, well, he sounds real nice to me. Who is the lucky guy, exactly?"

  
"He's... another professor who works at Beacon."

  
_"Ohhh?"_

  
"Uhm..." Your words caught in your throat. You had to admit, you must have been acting quite foolish at the moment. Blushing over a guy like a love-struck teenager.

  
"Come on," Sapphire pressed, "At least tell me his name!"

  
"His name..." You muttered, somewhat embarrassed, "His name is Ozpin, and he's the headmaster of Beacon Academy."

  
"Oh my gosh..." Sapphire snickered.

  
"What?" You asked. Sapphire giggled a bit more, then took a deep breath as her expression softened.

  
"Well, I just think it's... I dunno, romantic, in a way." She grinned innocently up at you, "It's really sweet, I hope things work out between you two."

  
"Wait-" You stuttered, trying to explain yourself. "I didn't... I mean, we're not-"

  
Sapphire only laughed again, cutting you off as she spoke.

  
"Please, it's written all over your face. Even a blind person could see that you've really got it bad for him."

  
"I've got... What?" Okay, you were really confused.

  
"Alright, look," Sapphire turned to face you completely, "As much as I'd love to walk you through all this, the only way you'll be able to really understand is to do some thinking on your own. I've gotta get back to work, but just take it easy, okay? Things'll be much easier once you sort your feelings out."

  
With that, she waved goodbye and walked back to her shop, leaving you dumbstruck on the side of the street. You sighed, heading toward the pick-up point to catch a shuttle back to Beacon. You were deep in thought the entire time, thinking about what Sapphire said.

  
Yeah, okay, being around Ozpin was nice and he helped you out a lot. Sure, sometimes you would get lost in his beautiful brown eyes and stare at him for a bit longer than necessary, but that didn't mean that you fell for him.

  
No. There was absolutely no way that he was anything more than a friend to you. You simply enjoyed his company in a way that was, in no sense, romantic.

  
And... that was all a huge lie that you told yourself.

  
You weren't sure how, but you somehow managed to fall in love with Ozpin.

  
Little did you know, however, was that the feeling was very much mutual between the two of you.


	18. Back Into Shadows

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> On a bright beautiful day, Team STRQ decides to go on a personal mission to the city of Vale. Things begin to turn sour, however, when Summer stumbles upon an unfortunate scene

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I originally wanted to make this a nice, upbeat chapter, but... yeah.
> 
> By the way, I have a tumblr now! Be sure to follow me @moon--toon.tumblr.com

No longer having a weapon made you feel... vulnerable. A huntsman without a weapon could only do so much, and your hand-to-hand combat skills weren't as efficient as you'd care to admit. Although this was definitely a good opportunity to improve upon your abilities, you still didn't like the idea of not having a weapon handy in case something happened.

  
Even if you did decide to start building a new weapon, you weren't sure if you wanted to try something different, or stick with your previous model of Whiplash. While it was true that you were much more proficient with Whiplash, it couldn't hurt to try something new.

  
After all, it was Salem who gifted you with Whiplash in the first place. Perhaps it was for the best that you refrained from depending on something given to you by her.

  
You sighed, unsure of what to do about your situation. It had been a good week since the incident, and you were no closer to finding a good replacement for your weapon. All you had at the moment was your dagger, and a notebook blank of any written ideas.

  
Sitting back in your chair, you rubbed your eyes and sighed. You currently sat at your classroom desk; class had ended half an hour ago, but you decided to stay behind for a bit in case any students decided to drop by for extra help. So far, no one had showed up.

  
In the hallway, team STRQ walked by, stopping momentarily to look into the near-empty classroom. You didn't notice them, your tired silver eyes stared intently at the blank page of your notebook, pencil tapping the white paper as you wracked your mind for ideas.

  
They stared at you for few moments before continuing on their way to to their dorm. Summer remained silent as they walked, tuning out the conversation between her team members before suddenly speaking up with an idea in mind.

  
"You know..." She said, cutting off whatever it was they were talking about. "I don't think Professor (y/n) has a new weapon to replace his whip yet."

  
"Yeah, and...?" Taiyang responded.

  
"Well, it's kind of our fault it got broken, so..." She muttered.

  
"Correction," Qrow spoke up, "It's Raven's fault his weapon is broken, because she broke it."

  
"Only because you weren't quick enough to defend yourself!" Raven retorted.

  
"Okay, enough!" Summer spoke over the two twin siblings, catching everyone's attention. "Bottom line, he doesn't have a weapon anymore. Which means that if that Salem lady tries something again, he'll be completely defenseless against her."

  
"And what do you expect us to do?" Raven placed a hand on her hip, raising an eyebrow. "Make him a new one?"

  
"Yup!" Summer nodded, "I already have a design in mind. I've been thinking about this for a while, and I think it would really help him out."

  
"And why can't he just make it himself?" Qrow crossed his arms.

  
"I think you two are missing the point," Taiyang cut in, "Besides, I doubt he has much time to focus on building himself a new weapon from scratch. I think Summer has a good idea, and it is kind of our fault it got broken and lost in the first place.

  
"...That, and maybe he'll even give us higher grades if we do." Tai smiled and shrugged. Qrow rolled his eyes before responding.

  
"Alright, fine. But he'd better give us extra credit for it."

  
With that, Raven sighed before walking past the other three into their dorm. "As if I have a choice..." She muttered, the rest of the team following her inside. Summer reached under her mattress, retrieving a small notebook and opened it, flipping through the pages until she stopped on a particular page. Turning it around, she showed her team her sketches and design for your weapon.

  
"I took a lot of inspiration from your weapons," She said, looking to Qrow and Raven. "But I figured he'd also like something similar to his last weapon for the sake of familiarity."

  
"That's... really impressive," Taiyang said, taking the notebook and looking over the design. "So we'll need flexible metal, but nothing fragile."

  
"And it has to conduct dust through it." Raven added, standing beside Tai and looking over Summer's design carefully.

  
"I know someone in Vale who owes me a favour," Tai spoke again, "He has access to precious metals, I can get some good parts by this weekend at the latest."

  
Summer nodded, then looked to Qrow, "Can you handle the internal mechanics?"

  
"Of course I can," Qrow answered, "Do you even have to ask?"

  
"I'll take care of the dust mechanisms." Raven said, ignoring her brother's rhetorical question.

  
"Alright," Summer smiled, "Then together, we can make Professor (y/n) a weapon way better than his last one!"

  
"I've got one question, though," Qrow cut in. Summer looked up at him, waiting for his question. "Why do you wanna help him so bad?"

  
"I mean... why not?" Summer shrugged.

  
"Well, he did admit to killing your dad." Qrow stated. "If everything he and Professor Ozpin said was true, why are you so intent on helping someone who killed your family?"

  
"Qrow-" Tai started, but Summer stopped him.

  
"No, it's okay." She looked from Taiyang to Qrow, "Yeah, he killed my dad... But that doesn't necessarily mean that it's his fault. That woman, Salem... She's the one who killed my dad, not Professor (y/n). He's been through things that we couldn't even imagine, and... I want to let him know that I forgive him."

  
"That kindness is going to get you killed someday, Summer." Raven sighed at her leader.

  
"Well, at least it's a good cause to die for. The world could use a little kindness." The silver-eyed huntress then took her notebook back, and wrote down a list of needed supplies before giving each of her team members a list. "So, you all know what you're doing?"

  
Taiyang, Raven, and Qrow all nodded in response. Summer nodded back, and looked over her own to-do list. "Then let's get started."

  
With that, the four set out to do their assigned tasks and retrieve their needed supplies. With class being dismissed for the day, they were free to go into the city and get the parts they required. Once they entered the city, they split ways to go to their respective shops.

  
Summer made her way to a weapon maintenance shop, looking for polish and an engraving kit. The only thing she could really do well for the project was basic assembly and cleaning it up, but she figured that she could at least add a bit of artistic charm to it as well. Seeing as it didn't take long to find what she needed, she decided to catch up with Tai instead of waiting for everyone at their meet-up point.

  
Paying for her items, she left the store and made her way to where her teammate said he would be. On the way, the young huntress spotted a nearby arts and crafts store, a dark-haired girl with a short red dress leaving the shop. Something suddenly felt off, almost wrong. Concerned, Summer entered the shop and stopped dead in her tracks at what she saw.

  
A black-haired faunus with a cat tail sat limply on the ground, propped up against the checkout counter with a black arrow struck through her chest. Her blue eyes were dull and clouded over with death.

  
Horrified, she retrieved her scroll to call the police, until she noticed a scroll lying nearby. The scroll, presumably belonging to the now-deceased shop owner, was still in the middle of a call. A frantic voice could be heard from the speaker, one that Summer recognized as yours. She carefully picked up the scroll, and sure enough, the contact currently open belonged to the grimmology teacher. She took a deep breath before bringing the scroll up to her ear.

  
"-on my way, okay?" Summer heard you say, before answering in a shaken voice.

  
"Professor (y/n)?" She asked.

  
"...Miss Rose?" You responded, obviously confused. "What are you doing there? Where's Sapphire?"

  
"Sapphire..." She looked down at the lifeless faunus in front of her, "She's... I think she's dead... I'm sorry."

  
The engines of an airship could be heard in the background of your call. You kept quiet for a while, processing her words.

  
"...What?" Was the only thing you managed to say.

  
Unable to say anything else, Summer ended the call and proceeded to call the police on her own scroll. You showed up just moments after she finished the call, bursting into the art shop in a breathless panic.

  
You froze when you stared into Sapphire's dull blue eyes, then looked down at the arrow protruding from her chest. It took seconds for you to put two and two together to know who the perpetrator was.

  
Walking forward, you plucked the arrow from Sapphire's body and examined the arrowhead. There was only one person you knew who used charcoal arrows as intricate as these. You clenched your fists as Summer watched you cautiously from the side.

  
"Did you contact the police?" You asked. Summer didn't have to answer as sirens sounded in the distance. Taking that as your cue to leave, you turned to exit the shop.

  
"Professor (y/n)?" Summer spoke up, "What's going on? Who was Sapphire?"

  
You paused and gripped the arrow shaft, nearly snapping it in half. Taking a deep breath, you sighed as you turned back and knelt down in front of Sapphire's body, you gently closed her eyes and stood back up.

  
"She was a friend." You said, turning around once more and leaving the shop.

  
Cinder couldn't have gotten too far within the short time she would have escaped at. Luckily, you didn't have to go far to find her. Turning into a darkened back alleyway, you came to a halt as you heard footsteps behind you. Whirling around, you threw the charcoal arrow at Cinder, who caught it before it pierced her left eye.

  
"How rude," She said in her familiar smug tone, "And after all the trouble I went through to find you."

  
"I'd hardly say killing a defenseless shop owner is any trouble." You growled, silver eyes glinting as clouds blew in and blocked out the sun. Your hand hovered over the hilt of your dagger, ready to draw it if need be.

  
"Come now, I only wanted to talk." She smirked, "Aren't we friends?"

  
"With a friend like you, I wouldn't need enemies." Your eyes narrowed, drawing your dagger from its sheath. "What do you want?"

  
"The glove." She stepped forward, "It's obvious that you haven't used it on Ozpin... yet."

  
"I burned it a while ago. Even if I did still have it, I wouldn't be stupid enough to give it to you."

  
She glared at you for a few moments before speaking once more.

  
"Very well." She sighed dramatically, turning away to take her leave. "By the way, I'm sorry about your friend. She was very lovely, and quite the screamer..."

  
With the last string snapped, you charged forward with your dagger at the ready. Before you could get close, however, she turned around briefly to throw several small knives at the ground in a line. The soil beneath each knife screamed as an amber glow emitted from it, and you stepped back before they exploded, causing you to lose sight of the young girl.

  
Putting your dagger away, you stood alone in the alley as you heard police sirens sound from the shop you had been in minutes ago. You turned your gaze up to Beacon Academy, the school resting high upon the cliff in the foggy distance. You felt tears prick your eyes as the sudden weight of the situation dawned upon you. Sapphire was dead, and it was your fault. You felt hot tears stream down your cheeks as your vision turned completely white.

 

  
In the distance, miles away, there was a darkened land where nothing but creatures of grimm grew, rising from puddles of pure darkness. Among the jagged rocks of the landscape stood a tower, and atop that dark tower was a white-haired woman with piercing crimson eyes.

  
She looked into the blood red horizon as she spoke, seemingly to herself though the words were directed to another.

  
"You're a fool to believe that he can escape the darkness that dwells deep within his soul," She said, "You can feel it, reviving itself and taking root- despite all his efforts to rid himself of it for your sake, you know that he will never truly escape it. I know that you love each other, Ozpin. You really do. And here's the tragedy;

  
"It's not enough. You are allowed to watch the shadows swallow him whole and drown him in sorrow, to stain your fingers to the bone holding him together, to count the stars in his eyes as they blink out...

  
"You are not allowed to save him."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, I made this one long because I'll probably take a brief break from this work so I don't get too burned out. I might write a few unrelated one-shots, or add chapters to Emerald Flowers- who knows. Bottom line, I need a quick break. Nothing too long, just a little something so I have time to rest. 
> 
> Thanks for reading <3


	19. A Spark

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Awaking from a month-long slumber, you find yourself in the infirmary with several guests waiting to see you.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I managed to get my internet back sooner than I thought I would, woo! Sorry for the long wait, and thank you all for being so patient!

_"What are you doing, brother?"_

  
_"Oh... well, I'm observing Remnant."_

  
_"I thought we agreed that we would leave that world behind us."_

  
_"Yes, but it doesn't hurt to look back every now and again."_

  
_"Perhaps, but I stand by what I said."_

  
_"Look and see, brother. Look at this one human."_

  
_"Hmmm... They have your eyes."_

  
_"And your power."_

  
_"Well I'll be... It's not often that an individual such as this presents itself."_

  
_"I believe the last one similar to this one was Ozpin."_

  
_"Speaking of which, has he made any progress?"_

  
_"Not much, it seems; though he did manage to recruit them."_

  
_"I suggest we keep an eye on this one."_

  
_"I couldn't agree more, dear brother."_

 

* * *

 

 

Slowly blinking your eyes open, you're greeted with plain light grey walls and dimmed lights. Sitting up, you find yourself lying in a white bed with matching white sheets, leaving you to believe that you were currently in Beacon's infirmary. It wasn't somewhere you visited often, whether it be as a patient or a visitor.

  
You heard someone enter the room through the doorway to your right, and sudden bright lights flicked on. You blinked and squinted at the sudden brightness before turning your head to look at the visitor, who turned out to be none other than the familiar face of the headmaster himself. He gave you a small smile, with a tray carrying two mugs of hot chocolate in is hands. Setting the tray on the wooden bedside table, he pulled up a chair and sat down, swiping through his scroll before speaking.

  
"According to the Kingdom's defense management, all creatures of grimm within a ten kilometer radius of Vale had evaporated after a bright light had been sighted inside the city." He said, holding the scroll out for you to see. A video played of a pack of beowolves prowling around outside the kingdom walls. According to the coordinates in the bottom right corner of the screen, the location of the pack was approximately 5.3 km away from Vale. Your silver eyes widened slightly as you watched them disintegrate and fade away, with seemingly no cause as to why.

  
After the video, Ozpin put his scroll away and retrieved one of the mugs from your bedside table before taking a sip and looking to you.

  
"(y/n), do you remember anything of what happened before you fell unconscious?" He asked.

  
"Well, I..." You paused, turning your gaze down to the pure white sheets of your bed, willing yourself to remember the events leading up to your sudden bout of unconsciousness. "I remember calling Sapphire. I wanted to visit her once she was finished work and-"

  
You cut yourself off as the sight of her limp, lifeless body flashed across your vision. Your breath caught in your throat as you remembered the charcoal arrow embedded in the center of her chest, and her sapphire blue eyes wide; clouded over with a faint trace of tears running down her pale white cheeks.

  
"Sapphire, is she...?" You trailed off, already knowing the answer as you looked back up at the headmaster. His warm smile was replaced with a much more somber expression as he looked at you.

  
"I'm afraid so," He answered quietly, "I'm sorry."

  
You looked away from Ozpin and back to the sheets as tears fell from your eyes. Your voice cracked slightly as you spoke.

  
"I remember finding her and Summer before I left her store..." You gripped the blanket covering your lower body, eyes narrowing as you continued. "Then I found Cinder, and... And then everything went white."

  
It was quiet for a few moments as you wiped away your tears. Ozpin held out the second mug of hot chocolate for you to take, which you gratefully accepted with a silent 'thank you'. The warmth of the mug soothed your nerves as you slowly calmed down. Tentatively taking a sip of the sweet beverage, you listened as Ozpin spoke again.

  
"You know who it was who killed her?" He asked cautiously, to which you nodded in response. "And her name... was Cinder?"

  
"Cinder Fall." You replied shakily, "Salem recruited her a few years after she found me. We worked together to find as much as we could on the maidens."

  
Ozpin hummed in response, taking a sip from his mug as he mulled over the brief information that you gave him. He eventually looked back up at you and, noticing your expression, spoke up.

  
"I understand what you're going through," He said, placing his mug back on the bedside table. "But you are not the one at fault. Blaming yourself only makes the situation that much more difficult to recover from. Sapphire's death was not of your doing."

  
You nodded silently as Ozpin stood from his seat, retrieving his mug before making his way to leave.

  
"I truly hope you feel better soon," he said, turning to take his leave. "And if you ever fell the need to talk, please don't hesitate to ask."

  
Closing the door behind him, Ozpin sighed as he looked down at his mug of hot chocolate. He wouldn't admit it, but he was terribly worried about you. You had been comatose for nearly a month now - although with the amount of energy you had utilized during your sudden outburst, that was to be expected. Though he was well aware of the power behind the silver eyes, he had never seen it's power used to such an extent.

  
Suddenly aware of the sound of several pairs of footsteps, Ozpin looked up to see team STRQ making their way down the hallway of the infirmary toward your room. Taking a sip from his mug, he watched as the students approached, speaking up when they were close enough.

  
"Is there anything I can help you with?" He asked.

  
"Oh, uh..." Summer sputtered, clutching a large rectangular box and a single white rose close to her chest. "We were just wondering if Professor (y/n) was awake?"

  
"He just woke up a minute ago," he answered the young huntress, "Though I advise that you give him some time before visiting him."

  
"Is he okay?" Taiyang asked, tilting his head slightly.

  
"Yes, he's alright. He simply needs some time to adjust." Ozpin paused as he looked to Summer before speaking again, "He lost someone quite dear to him, after all."

  
The four students fell silent as Ozpin turned, and walked away in the opposite direction. Taiyang, Raven, and Qrow all turned to leave as well, taking the hint that now wasn't the time to bother their professor. They hesitated for a moment before looking to their leader, who didn't appear fazed in the slightest.

  
"Summer, come on," Raven said, "Let's go."

  
"I'll catch up with you guys in a minute." She replied, looking back at her teammates. "Don't worry, I'll meet you in the library."

  
Qrow simply shrugged and continued, Taiyang and Raven looking at each other skeptically before making their way to the library.

  
Once they were far enough away, she then stood herself right in front of the door. After waiting a few minutes, she brought the one arm up to knock gently on the wooden door as the other continued to hold on tightly to her items.

  
"Come in." A faint voice spoke through the door. Carefully opening it slightly, she poked her head through and looked into the room before speaking softly.

  
"Professor (y/n)?" She said. Hearing and seeing no signs of protest, she opened the door fully and entered the room before closing it behind her.

  
You were sitting up in your bed, your back resting against the thin headboard of the infirmary bed frame. You stared intently out the windows to your left, keeping her from seeing your face. You watched as the dark clouds in the sky slowly began spitting down rain until it started pouring, the fat water droplets beating rhythmically against the clean glass of the window pane.

  
Turning her focus from the window to you, she noticed that you wore no shirt or upper layers; most likely to make examinations and checkups easier for the nurses and doctors whilst you were in a coma. Instead of getting embarrassed about it, however, Summer found herself interested in the numerous scars that littered your skin. It wasn't uncommon for a huntsman to possess battle scars from dangerous encounters with bandits and creatures of grimm, but she had never seen anyone with nearly as many scars as you.

  
She soon found herself staring, her silver gaze tracing each mark that caught her eye. The largest she saw was a thin scar running along your left collarbone, before curving down diagonally and ending just below your right pectoral. There were several other, smaller scars, but that one seemed to stand out the most.

  
"Can I help you...?"

  
Snapping out of her daze, her face flushed red when she realized that she had been caught staring. She nearly choked - looking into your intense silver gaze, she gripped the box and white rose tight as she spoke.

  
"Oh, uh, y-yeah," She stuttered, "Sorry to bother you, professor. I know you just woke up, so it must be hard for you."

  
"It's alright, I'll be fine." You offered a small smile to reassure her, "You're hardly a bother, Miss Rose; though I'm definitely curious as to why you came to visit."

  
Summer nodded, taking a deep breath before speaking.

  
"Well, I've been doing a lot of thinking these past few months." Her silver gaze drifted away from you and to the side. "About my dad, about you... and now, about Salem."

  
Your eyes widened slightly as she looked back at you before continuing. "And I've decided that it wasn't your fault. That blaming you for what happened to my dad is not only unfair to you, but unfair to him. You only killed him because you had to - you had no choice. I'll admit, I didn't get it at first, I was so angry when I saw you here in the beginning of the school year but... but I know that I didn't understand, even now I can't really fully understand you and what you did; I doubt I ever will.

  
"But I don't _have_ to understand what you've done, because I forgive you."

  
Summer smiled, a bright contrast to the dark storm outside. You stared at her, not even attempting to mask the shock you felt. She relaxed her shoulders, stepping forward and handing you the box and rose she held.

  
"Now it's time for you to forgive yourself."

  
Carefully taking the box and the flower, you set the box in your lap as you held onto the white rose. Twirling the stem in your fingers, you watched the pure, soft petals as you gradually processed her words. Finally, you held on tight to the flower, sighing deeply.

  
"You're much too kind to me, Miss Rose." You said, "I hardly deserve it."

  
"I think everyone deserves at least a little kindness in their life." Summer grinned in response, "Now come on, open the box! We worked hard on this, I want to see your reaction!"

  
Setting the white rose down gently on your bedside table beside an empty mug, you then turned your attention to the large rectangular box in your lap. It wasn't anything too grand, just a simple brown lift-lidded box.

  
Removing the lid from the box and looking down at its contents, your silver eyes widened at the sight.

  
"So? What do you think?" Summer asked.

  
You were absolutely speechless as you looked down at the silver sword. Intricate (colour) engravings were carefully etched on the blade. The style of the sword was similar to Qrow's, a one-sided blade that appeared segmented; though the blade itself was only slightly larger than what Raven would wield. There was a twistable dust compartment in the guard, and what looked like a trigger on the grip.

  
"When the trigger is pulled," Summer spoke up, "It extends into a whip."

  
Picking the weapon up by the grip, you brought the back of the blade up your face, looking down the length before examining the engravings closer.

  
"It's amazing..." You finally said, running your fingers over the new weapon to get a better feel of it. "You and your team built this?"

  
"Yeah. It took a while, but I think it was worth it."

  
Turning your gaze up from the weapon and toward the young huntress, you smiled gratefully at her.

  
"It's wonderful, thank you so much." You said.

  
"It's nothing." Summer replied, waving her hand before perking up. "Oh! Here, let me show you the mechanisms and how to keep up with maintenance!"

  
At that, you spent the rest of your day with Summer Rose, who enthusiastically went over the functions of your new weapon - as well as its features. The pounding rain of the storm outside soon became nothing but a soothing ambiance as you and the young huntress chatted enthusiastically.


	20. Forever Fall

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Despite Ozpin and Summer's initial kindness when you awoke, you find yourself having trouble coping with loss. Luckily, the headmaster is there to listen to your troubles and offer more than simple advice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was a little impatient while writing this chapter, so sorry if it seems a bit rushed. It could be that I'm a little tired right now, or maybe it's the entire 3 lb bag of skittles I ate earlier...

With the Vytal Festival Tournament approaching, class schedules had been altered to allow more time for the combat-based classes. Since you had already covered most of the course material for your class, you only had one-hour periods to teach on Friday mornings. This left you with a _lot_ more free time, and though you appreciated the break after being in a month-long coma, you didn't have a lot to do with yourself anymore.

  
Drawing and painting hardly appealed to you anymore, and you never entertained the idea of going to the city - especially with Sapphire gone. The feeling was strange yet familiar to you; how the things you once enjoyed no longer interested you, and you were hardly aware of the time passing by. It was almost like you weren't fully there.

  
Your unusual behavior hadn't gone unnoticed, of course. Despite your feeble attempts to assure everyone that you were fine, it was quite obvious that you were most definitely _not_ fine. Though you performed the role of a teacher and taught the required curriculum, you weren't truly there as a _teacher._

  
It was currently a cloudy Saturday afternoon, and you were spending your day in the Forever Fall Forest. A light breeze ruffled the vibrantly coloured leaves, drifting through the sap-soaked trees of the surrounding forest. You sat on a maple wood bench, observing the scenery and listening to the faint rustling of the underbrush. You weren't quite sure how long you had been there - you could have been sitting there for hours, or even days for all you knew. Time had lost its meaning to you, if that wasn't already obvious enough.

  
The day slowly passed by until the faint glow of the sun behind the clouds descended, and a vague outline of the shattered moon rose. You turned you eyes skyward as the clouds gradually disappeared; allowing the glow of the moon to shine down on the forest, accompanied with the dim light of the small stars.

  
You continued to stare at the night sky, paying no mind to the sound of crunching leaves behind you. You didn't have to look to know who it was, you were quite familiar with the headmaster's soothing aura. He remained silent as he approached, sitting down beside you on the bench and following your gaze up to the darkened sky above. Neither of you said a word as you watched the stars flicker, the occasional whiff of cloud passing by, silhouetted by the pure white moon.

  
Despite the lack of conversation, silence was unknown to the atmosphere around you. The wind had died down since earlier that day, but you could still hear the rustling of the leaves - as well as the movements of the forest's natural wildlife. The faint call of an owl could be heard from deeper within the woods, as a fox family scuttled from it's burrow, unafraid of the distant howl of a small pack of beowolves.

  
Even though you normally took comfort in silence, the absence of conversation suddenly became suffocating to you. Despite how you simply seemed to float through the past two weeks, seemingly unfazed by recent events, the reality of everything immediately came crashing over you.

  
Small tears escaped your silver eyes, running down your cheeks and falling into your lap. A wave of emotion swept over you as you quietly cried, until you took a deep breath and finally spoke up.

  
"Salem once told me that, after we die, our souls fade away and we cease to exist." Ozpin blinked, looking over to you as you caught his attention. "But my mother didn't think so."

  
You kept your gaze fixated on the many stars in the sky, mentally taking note on how some appeared brighter than others. The wizard beside you watched as they reflected in your eyes, the light of the moon seemingly caused your silver eyes glow with a melancholic brilliance. He waited patiently for you to continue, listening intently to what you said. It was one of the few times that you mentioned your family to him; the only other occasion being when you explained how you unlocked your semblance, and even then you had kept it very brief.

  
"I don't remember much about my parents..." You continued, "But I do remember one time, I asked my mother about what happens after we die. It's a rather difficult topic to discuss with a child, but she was sincere in sharing her beliefs with me."

  
You closed your eyes, recounting the events of your seemingly distant past. You could just faintly remember your mother's warm smile and soft (colour) eyes - a quality that you had possessed before they were replaced with August's trait of silver eyes. You didn't think about your deceased family often, but this was one time where you decided that it wouldn't hurt to indulge yourself with reminiscing in memories long forgotten.

  
"She told me that a soul never truly dies," You said, opening your watery eyes, "They simply ascend into the sky, and become one of the many stars in the night... ensuring that every soul can watch over the loved ones they departed from, with the moon as their protector."

  
Ozpin said nothing in response, instead turning his gaze back up to the sky. It was an interesting belief, and surprisingly, one he hadn't heard before in his past lifetimes. While it may not be entirely true, he definitely appreciated the poetic elements of it all.

  
Once again you fell back into silence, the ambiance of the autumn woods being the only noise found within the cool night you shared. You could hear a mouse scutter among the fallen leaves, chewing on seeds before fleeing underneath a bush. The roar of an ursa could be heard nearby, but neither of you paid the grimm creature any mind.

  
Sighing, you wiped away your tears as a cold breeze sent a shiver down your spine. Calming down, you turned your gaze down from the darkened sky and stared at the gentle silver-lined foliage of the fallen leaves.

  
"What would they think of me now..." You muttered bitterly, watching a crimson maple leaf descend to the forest floor. "Letting an innocent girl die because of my own selfishness..."

  
"You know that it wasn't your fault-"

  
Cutting Ozpin off, you stood up abruptly before taking a few steps forward and looking up at the treeline, as if you were looking for the looming threat of a seer.

  
"But it is my fault!" You spoke fiercely, hands clenching into fists. "I knew that Salem was keeping an eye on me, I knew that she'd target anyone I got close to; to anyone who gives me the smallest semblance of happiness..."

  
You suddenly felt a firm hand grasp your shoulder, and a wave of calm washed over you before you got too upset. Looking back, your silver eyes met Ozpin's soft brown stare. He waited a few moments before speaking.

  
"I understand what you're going through, (y/n)." His calm voice soothed your nerves, and you felt yourself relax as he spoke. "But please understand that Sapphire's death was not your fault. You never asked for any of this, but sometimes... bad things just happen, even to good people. Sapphire's death was a great tragedy, and it won't be the last that you'll experience; but you cannot let that stop you from moving forward. I know that you want to be free from Salem, but you will never truly escape her unless you free yourself from the guilt she forces you to bear. It's not only unfair to you, but unfair to the ones who support you- including Sapphire."

  
You sighed softly, looking away once more.

  
"She didn't deserve to die..." You whispered. Ozpin nodded in response, moving his hand from your shoulder and instead wrapping his arm around your waist, pulling you closer in a comforting manner.

  
"No, she didn't... as do many. But, if you believe that your mother was right, then take comfort in knowing that she's watching over you. All of them are."

  
Silence followed his words as you looked back up at the night sky. Ozpin, on the other hand, cast his gaze down to look at you.

  
_You deserve so much more than this._

  
He watched the glimmer of the stars reflect perfectly in your sparkling silver eyes.

  
_You deserve all the happiness the world has to offer._

  
He stared as the moon shone brilliantly upon your soft skin.

  
_You're the most gifted being in all of Remnant._

  
His eyes fell to your lips, slightly chapped with a faint blue hue at the corners due to the cold night air.

  
_I love you._

  
As if you could hear his thoughts, you turned your gaze from the sky to look at him. Thus, against his better judgement, he found himself pressing his lips against yours.

  
You were definitely more than surprised at the sudden action; caught off-guard, you weren't quite sure how to respond. Once you registered what was happening, however, you attempted to return the gesture- albeit somewhat awkwardly, as you were hardly the most experienced at kissing.

  
Despite the surprise and awkward response, you found yourself growing more comfortable to the sensation. You turned your body to face him fully, pressing your chest against his and resting your hands on his shoulders.

  
Once you both pulled away, Ozpin rested his forehead against yours and held you close. You stayed like that for a while, staring into each others' eyes. Soon, however, Ozpin closed his eyes, seemingly scolding himself.

  
"I'm sorry," He said. You simply smiled at him and, feeling bold, you pecked him on the lips before replying.

  
"Don't be," You replied as he opened his eyes, "I believe the saying is 'actions speak louder than words'."

  
After that, neither of you said a word as you spent the rest of the night in each other's arms.


	21. Lunchroom Brawl

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finally recovering from Sapphire's death, you go about your duty as a teacher before you depart for Vacuo.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Three guesses as to which episode this was inspired by

It was a sunny afternoon as you walked towards the school cafeteria, breathing in the warm clean air as you passed by several students. It was your last day to supervise the students during lunch before you left for the Vytal Festival held in Vacuo. Ozpin had insisted that you accompany him to Shade Academy, as he had business to attend to with the headmaster of the huntsman academy. Not only would it be a good opportunity for you to get out of Vale, but it would be a healing experience for you since it would be the first time you could attend the Vytal Festival.

  
You were rather excited, to say the least. Ever since you became a professor at Beacon Academy, you hadn't strayed far from the kingdom's protective walls. Even whilst you were accompanying team STRQ on their mission against the swarm of lancers, Vale was within a few hours' flight by airship.

  
Your good mood suddenly dropped the moment you entered the cafeteria, however, as a half-eaten slice of coconut cream pie collided with your face. The entire cafeteria fell silent as the students slowly looked from you to Qrow Branwen, who stood frozen on his chair, staring as the sticky food dripped from your face. You wiped the dessert from your eyes as the plate fell to the floor, glaring at him intensely.

  
Now, there were many ways to respond to this sort of situation. You could have given Qrow detention, you could have put an end to the little food fight that you walked in on, you could have called Glynda and reported the incident. But instead of doing any of those reasonable things, your mind immediately went to grabbing a heavily-frosted cupcake from a nearby table and hurling it at the first year student.

  
The cupcake landed right on target, hitting him between the eyes as chocolate icing splattered across his face.

  
It didn't end there, however. Instead, the situation escalated immensely as Taiyang flung a plate of spaghetti at you, which you shielded yourself from with a metal lunch tray.

  
Many students began to flee the cafeteria, not wanting to get caught in the middle of the oncoming storm that was sure to be an epic food fight between a talented young professor and a first year team of huntsmen-in-training. Soon, the only ones left in the lunchroom were you and team STRQ.

  
You stood in the center of the cafeteria as the team took their places and stood valiantly on their lunch table, facing you. Staring them down, you wordlessly dared one of them to make the first move.

  
Raven was first to act, grabbing a baguette and charging at you head-on. Taking a cucumber from a bowl of vegetables, you blocked her swing at you before reaching for a mustard bottle and pushing her back before squirting the yellow condiment at her. She ducked down, allowing several tomatoes thrown by Taiyang to fly past her head.

  
You swiftly deflected each tomato back and managed to land a few on Raven, whose Baguette had broke from your retaliation Qrow was next to come forward, baguette in hand. Much like the encounter with his sister, you blocked his oncoming attack with your cucumber. But, unlike the last encounter, his semblance seemed to kick in and caused you to slip and fall back in a puddle of mustard.

  
As your back collided with the ground, you swiftly rolled to the side as Qrow stabbed his bread stick down into the floor where you had been mere seconds before. Seizing opportunity from your low position, you kicked his feet from underneath him and sent a splash of mustard his way, coating him as he hit the ground.

  
Standing to your feet, you were immediately met with Taiyang's chicken-covered fist colliding with your gut, sending you soaring back into the concrete wall beside the entrance and causing you to drop both your cucumber and half-empty bottle of mustard. As Taiyang sprung forward at you, you pushed yourself up against the wall to lift your legs and kicked him back before he could land another hit on you, allowing you time to arm yourself. You didn't have much time however, as a recovered Raven sprang back into action, two large carrots in her hands.

  
Jumping up and flipping back so you could plant your feet against the wall above, you evaded her oncoming attack and sprung toward a nearby table, grabbing a lengthy string of sausages and swinging them at Raven. She hardly had time to react as you whipped her chest forcefully, sending her back into the wall where you had once been.

  
Hearing movement behind you, you turned just in time to counteract Summer's barrage of grapes and various other berries. Grabbing another tray, you managed to block the assaulting fruits before jumping up and kicking down on one end of the table you stood upon, catapulting a buffet of food at the young huntress. Taiyang managed to get to her side just in time, blocking oncoming bits of food with his chicken-covered fists.

  
You then grabbed a nearby watermelon and hurled it at him as his focus was aimed at the aerial assault, hitting him painfully in his gut as the impact sent him back a few meters. Springing up from her place behind her teammate, Summer leaped up with bottles of ketchup and mustard in her hands, sending a rain of red and yellow down upon you.

  
You managed to roll underneath a table before the impact landed, and grabbed a handful of celery sticks that were scattered nearby. Rolling out from your shelter beneath the table, you swiftly jumped to your feet and sent the sticks of celery soaring at her, as she was too far away for your makeshift whip of sausage to reach. Deflecting the projectiles with the empty condiment bottles, she ducked and allowed Taiyang to leap over her and take the lead.

  
Taiyang charged at you with two leeks, only for you to swing at him with your sausages and wrap them around his waist. Having a good hold on him, you then swung up over your head, and sent him crashing down into a table full of pastries.

  
However, as your attention was focused on Taiyang, you failed to notice the rest of the team group together behind you, armed with various bottles of flavoured soda. By the time you turned around and discover their plan, it was too late.

  
They all opened fire, popping the caps off the plastic bottles and coating you with the sugary, carbonated liquid. It soaked through your clothes and stained the fabrics with a rainbow of colours. Once they were finished their assault, they all cheered in triumph at the sight of you, thoroughly drenched in the sticky substance.

  
Their celebration was cut short however, as you opened your eyes; their smiles faded at the sight of your silver eyes glowering with a subdued yet raging fire.

  
Focusing your aura into shielding your arm, you punched the ground with enough force to lift nearby tables into the air- including the one that Summer, Raven, and Qrow stood upon.

  
Before the tables fell back to the ground, you quickly used your whip of sausage to sweep all the food from the table tops and send it all flying toward the students. They had no time to react as they were pelted with various foods and beverages with enough force to send them all flying back into the tables behind them.

  
Once your ferocious barrage was over, they all lied down in silence before erupting into a fit of laughter. You joined in, laughing at the mess they lied in and at your soaked and stained clothes.

  
Your little moment of joy was interrupted, however, at the sound of the cafeteria doors slamming open to reveal a rather less-than-pleased Glynda. She waved her riding crop gracefully, cleaning up the scattered food and setting the tables down in their proper place with her telekinetic powers. Once the mess was tidied up, her intense gaze swept over from the team of students and landed on you. She opened her mouth to speak, only to be interrupted by Ozpin, who had just entered the cafeteria.

  
"Professor (y/n)." He said calmly, "A word, please."

  
You nodded and followed Ozpin out of the cafeteria, Glynda staying close behind. You could feel her glare melting into the back of your skull as she spoke.

  
"Unbelievable." She began, "You were assigned to supervise the students, not to engage in a food fight with them!"

  
"Glynda." Ozpin said, glancing back past you and at the huntress walking behind you. She sighed quietly in response, saying nothing else as you entered the headmaster's office. The silence of the elevator ride up was suffocating, but you didn't say a word. You felt your anxiety grow the closer you got to the top of the tower.

  
Finally, the elevator doors opened, allowing the three of you to enter his office. Ozpin went forward and took his seat behind his desk, Glynda standing by his side. You stood nervously in front of them, waiting for either one of them to speak. When neither did, you finally took it upon yourself to apologize.

  
"I'm sorry." You said quietly. The statement only seemed to irritate Glynda as she stepped forward.

  
"Is that all you have to say for yourself?" She spoke harshly, "You're a professor at this school, therefore you are expected to _act_ like one! You are not supposed to fool around with the students like a child!"

  
She swung her crop down in frustration, causing it to snap at you. Despite it doing no real harm to you, the sound suddenly caused an ill memory to resurface and flash before your eyes. You were suddenly thrown back to your time with Salem, a seer's tendril wrapped around your neck as another snapped at your skin, leaving a nasty gash running along your collarbone and down your chest.

  
Immediately panicking, you took a few steps back and covered your head with your arms as you spoke in a broken voice.

  
"I'm sorry! It won't happen again, I swear!"

  
Startled by your reaction, both Ozpin and Glynda stared at you in shock. After a few moments, you remembered where you really were and what was happening. Taking a deep breath and lowering your arms to your sides, you stood up straight as you spoke.

  
"I mean..." You hesitated, looking up at them shakily, "I sincerely apologize. I promise that it won't happen again."

  
Ozpin stared at you with concern when he saw your hands tremble, clenching them into fists. He sighed softly as he stared at you before nodding. You well understood what you did wrong, and apologized. That was enough for him.

  
"Then that will be all." He said, looking to Glynda briefly, "Now perhaps you should go clean up. You must be... quite uncomfortable right now."

  
Turning his gaze back to you, the look in his eyes said everything.

  
_Please don't hesitate to confide in me if you need to._

  
You nodded sullenly, retreating back into the elevator and casting a quick glance back at Glynda before the doors closed. Once you were gone, Glynda turned to the headmaster with an annoyed sigh escaping her lips.

  
"You let him off too easily, you know." She said, crossing her arms.

  
"He knows what he did was wrong, and will learn from it." Ozpin replied simply.

  
"That kind of childish behavior should not go unpunished, he's an adult." Glynda narrowed her eyes at the headmaster, who looked calmly at her as she scolded him.

  
"He's an adult who had his childhood stolen from him," He reasoned, "He's already been punished more than enough."

  
Understanding his words, her glare softened slightly as she huffed and relaxed her shoulders. Taking her position by his side, she looked out the window as Ozpin turned his chair around to do the same. A few dark and heavy clouds began to set in, blocking out the afternoon sun.

  
"You're too easy on him." She added as an afterthought.

  
"Because he's been forced to live through a hard and difficult life." Ozpin responded, mulling over his thoughts as a light rain began to drizzle down upon the glass windows.


	22. A Grimm Encounter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> On your way to the kingdom of Vacuo, you encounter a slight problem during your flight to the desert kingdom.

_A pack of beowolves could be heard howling in the distance as you looked around the familiar dark landscape, the only light source being that of the fragmented moon sitting high in the blood-red sky. You shivered as the beowolf howls were accompanied by ursa roars and a nevermore's shrieks, the sound of the far away grimm leaving you with a heavy feeling of dread._

  
_You froze immediately when you heard the unmistakable sound of a seer, it's guttural clicking noises chilling you to the bone as you turned around and faced the jellyfish-like creature. You attempted to smite it down with the power of your silver eyes, only to find that the grimm killing power no longer resided in your body. Stepping back, you felt your foot come into contact with a large puddle of thick liquid. Looking down into the grimm puddle of darkness, you could see your reflection in the grimy liquid. Your eyes widened when you saw that you no longer possessed silver eyes; instead, your eyes took the colour of what they had been before you stole August's power. Your (colour) eyes stared back up at you from your reflection within the thick black puddle of ooze._

  
_Looking back up at the seer, one of its thin tendrils shot forward, binding itself tightly around your neck and depriving you of air. Several other bladed tendrils were raised in the air around you in a threatening manner as Salem appeared from a darkened mist behind the grimm creature, glaring menacingly at you with her piercing crimson gaze._

  
_"I warned you, (y/n)." She said, moving to the side and allowing you to see past her._

  
_Your eyes widened as you let out a choked scream at the sight of the many dead bodies lying in large pools of their own blood. Tears pricked your eyes as you stared at your fallen students and fellow teachers from Beacon, all staring up at you with blank, lifeless eyes clouded over with death._

  
_Bringing your hands up and clawing in vain at the tendril digging into the flesh around your neck, you could only watch as Salem slowly approached you. She gracefully drifted toward you, her glowing red eyes glaring into you with nothing but ill intent._

 

* * *

 

 

Ozpin stared out the window, silently watching the waves of the deep blue ocean drift by. The headmaster of Beacon was currently aboard a large airship carrying the first intake of students participating in the Vytal Festival Tournament. You were on board the airship as well of course; but after seeing how apparent your fatigue was from many restless nights, he insisted that you rest in the back of the ship where it was quieter with no students present.

  
He was well aware of your more-than-occasional nightmares, which was something that didn't surprise him. He didn't know everything that Salem had done to you, but from what you _did_ tell him, well... needless to say, it didn't take a genius to figure out why you experienced frequent recurring nightmares and severe night terrors. He himself often fell victim to them as well; with the countless horrors he had seen and experienced over his many lives, it was to be expected. As such, you both found comfort in late night walks around campus, remaining at ease in each other's presence before turning in and going to bed. It seemed to help lessen the amount of restless nights for both of you, but it wasn't a perfect cure.

  
When you boarded the airship bound for Vacuo, it was apparent to Ozpin that you hadn't gotten a sufficient amount of rest over the past few nights. Despite your many protests and claims that you were fine, he insisted that you slept whilst on your journey to the desert kingdom.

  
Ozpin glanced over briefly at the other passengers aboard the aircraft, watching as students talked excitedly about meeting with distant friends and competing against the many opposing teams from across Remnant. The chatter stopped abruptly however, as the airship shook violently - throwing several students off their feet and others stumbling around for something secure to grasp onto. Ozpin himself had to lean heavily on his cane to keep balanced and remain standing.

  
Before he could make his way to the cabin to speak with the pilot, several griffons could be heard from outside the aircraft, screeching as they attacked and clawed at the windows at the inhabitants of the airship. Looking back out the window, he watched as countless grimm creatures surrounded their ship and targeted them. With nowhere to land and nowhere to hide, it seemed that they were utterly defenseless.

  
Turning around to face his students, everyone stared at him with varying degrees of fear and worry. He remained silent, pondering over his options before he caught sight of Summer.

  
"Miss Rose," He addressed her, "Go get Professor (y/n), _now_."

  
Nodding, she quickly made her way to the back of the ship, searching for you. Turning to the rest of the Beacon students, he spoke once more.

  
"As for the rest of you, I advise that you take a seat, or find something to hang on to."

  
Following the headmaster's orders, everyone found a place to sit and hung on to the many support bars attached to the walls. Ozpin then looked up to an emergency escape hatch in the roof and unsealed the latch, climbing through it and standing atop the the airship, he closed the door behind him. Several griffons made an attempt on his life, all of which had been swiftly disposed of and evaporated into dark mist in the blink of an eye.

  
Having a better view at the skies surrounding the aircraft, there was hardly any clear sky as the seemingly endless swarm of griffons surrounded him. It appeared that he was right to keep his students out of this fight, as there would be little chance of them all surviving a battle such as this one.

  
Leaping from the airship and landing on top of a nearby griffon, he sunk his cane into the back of its neck before leaping from the airborne grimm to do the same to many others. He soon retreated back to the airship to deal with a few grimm that made a move to attack it whilst he had left it undefended. Watching as several griffons charged the airship, he knelt down and dug his cane into the steel of the ship's rooftop, an emerald glow surging from his cane and coating the ship before taking the shape of a force field. The grimm creatures were all vapourized upon contact with the energy field, disappearing into black smoke instantaneously.

  
The shield around the ship faded as Ozpin stood to his feet, before retrieving his ringing scroll from his pocket. Answering Summer's call, he kept her on speaker as he dealt with a few more griffons who found it to be an ideal time to attack the wizard.

  
"Professor (y/n) won't wake up," Her worried voice said through the device, "I think he's having a nightmare - he doesn't look too good..."

  
"Keep trying," Ozpin responded, knocking a griffon off the wing of the airship, "We need him now."

  
"Okay." She replied, ending the call as Ozpin sunk his cane into a griffon's throat.

  
Where did all these creatures come from? Griffons never wandered far from land, why did they fly this far from the coast? And why wouldn't you wake up from your nightmare?

  
Suddenly, all his questions were answered as everything clicked into place in his mind. You were having a severe night terror, to the extent that you probably believed you were in _real_ danger. You were subconsciously reaching out to summon grimm from anywhere to help you, to defend you from an imaginary threat that didn't exist anywhere except in your dreams.

  
All the more reason to wake you as soon as possible.

  
Caught off guard for a split second, a griffon rammed into the side of the airship, causing him to lose his footing and for another grimm creature to knock him off the roof and send him falling to the ocean below.

  
Thinking quickly, he managed to control the direction of his descent and land on a griffon that happened to be flying by. Utilizing his newfound foothold, he sprung himself up into the air, grabbing hold of another griffon's talons and swinging himself up from the creature to the next one higher up, landing on its back. Keeping an eye on the airship's location, he gradually made his way back to the aircraft, leaping from the creatures off grimm and narrowly avoiding death as many tried to thwart his attempts at saving his students.

  
Before he could reach the airship, however, a segmented whip wrapped itself securely around his abdomen and pulled him towards the aircraft. He collided harshly with the roof, landing gracelessly and sprawled out behind you. Upon seeing your figure, he lifted himself to his feet and watched as many griffons retreated from your cold silver stare. A foolish few made an attempt to attack you, only to be met with a glare from your glowing silver eyes and evaporate instantly into black mist.

  
After disposing of the creatures of grimm, you turned around to face Ozpin with an apologetic look on your face. Your face fell slightly as you stared at him, his clothes slightly torn and battered from the intense battle against the unexpected onslaught of grimm.

  
Walking towards him and sighing, your shoulder brushed against his as you approached the rooftop hatch located behind him.

  
"I'm sorry." You said, kneeling down and unsealing the door.

  
"It's not your fault," Ozpin replied, standing beside you as you carefully unlatched the entrance. "You have nothing to apologize for."

  
You didn't seem convinced in the slightest, but remained silent as you opened the hatch and slipped through, landing inside the airship and closing the door once you were both inside and safe. Ozpin made his way to the cabin to speak with the pilot as you addressed the students, assuring everyone that the issue had been taken care of and that they could all relax now that the grimm had been taken care of.

  
Once the students slowly started calming down, Ozpin returned from the cabin and stared at you, doing nothing to mask his concern as he guided you back to the rear of the ship and into the quiet area scarce of passengers.

  
"Am I correct to assume that you didn't sleep very well?" Ozpin asked once the two of you were alone. You nodded sullenly, your mind replaying the events of your dream. Despite it only being a dream, the sight of your friends having been bloodied and bruised haunted you.

  
Noticing your distressed expression, Ozpin gently placed a hand on your shoulder as he stood in front of you, staring softly into your eyes.

  
_I'm here for you._

  
Letting out an exhausted sigh, you stepped closer and buried your face into Ozpin's chest. He froze for a moment, somewhat taken aback by the unexpected gesture before carefully wrapping his arms around you, as if you would shatter if he held you too tight.

  
"She was there..." You muttered, your voice slightly muffled by the fabric of his clothes. "She killed everyone."

  
Ozpin remained silent as he held you close, allowing you to speak openly about what had been troubling you.

  
"Everything felt so _real_ ," You spoke again, clutching on to Ozpin's vest as if it were your lifeline. "Everything she did _hurt_ , and I tried so hard to wake up but I _couldn't_ -..."

  
Gently rubbing circles on your back, he listened intently to every word you said.

  
You were broken and scarred beyond repair, something that Salem had ensured no matter what choice you made or what path you walked. _He couldn't save you._

  
But that wouldn't stop him from doing whatever he could to help you save yourself.


	23. The Desert Academy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Having arrived in Vacuo, you and Ozpin are to meet with the headmistress of Shade.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not much to say other than that this chapter is heavily dialogue-based;;

It was a bright and sunny day at Shade Academy, with not a cloud in the sky as the sun shone down harshly. You and Ozpin were currently waiting in a desert-themed office for the headmistress to arrive. Beside you stood Eunomia Bloom, who introduced herself as the combat teacher and school counselor.

  
Eunomia was a kind woman, though her rough exterior seemed to give off the wrong impression. Her intense jade green eyes seemed to glare at everyone, ever intimidating as her black and green salamander tail swished behind her. She radiated strength and power, almost similar to Ozpin. When you first met, you had mistook her for the headmistress of Shade Academy.

  
...and there was a part of you couldn't shake the feeling that you had heard her name before. The feeling nagged at the back of your mind as you occasionally snuck a glance at her from the corner of your eye. Where had you heard her name before?

  
Your thoughts were interrupted when the doors to the office opened, revealing the headmistress of Shade. She stood tall; holding herself with the pride and grace of royalty as her dark brown eyes swept across the room, smiling softly when her gaze fell upon the headmaster of Beacon.

  
"Professor Ozpin... It's been far too long." She spoke, before turning to look at you. "Forgive me, I didn't expect a student to accompany you. I don't believe I saw him registered for the Vytal Festival Tournament."

  
"Well I should hope not," Ozpin replied, the corners of his mouth twitching up. "This is Professor (y/n), Beacon's new Grimmology teacher."

  
She raised her eyebrows as she looked you over skeptically, before nodding and addressing you.

  
"My apologies, Professor." She said as she dipped her head slightly, giving you a chance to see the gold and blue cobra headdress she wore, contrasting against her short dark hair. "It's not often that someone as young as you is accepted as a teacher at the huntsmen academies."

  
"It's quite alright. This isn't the first time I was mistaken for a student, and I doubt that it will be the last." You replied, trying to brighten the mood a bit with some light humour. It seemed to work a bit as you saw her smile grow slightly at your remark.

  
"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you; I'm Professor Neferne Aten." She said, offering her hand to shake. Stepping forward and taking it, you smiled as you spoke.

  
"Please, the pleasure's all mine."

  
Letting go of her hand and retreating back to your place beside Ozpin, you fell quiet as he began speaking.

  
"Now that introductions are out of the way, I'd like to discuss matters concerning Eunomia."

  
Neferne's smile faltered, eyes narrowing as she glanced at you before turning back to Ozpin. Eunomia seemed somewhat startled before regaining her composure and making her way to stand beside the headmistress.

  
You were somewhat confused at the sudden change in atmosphere, as well as what exactly Ozpin meant by "matters concerning Eunomia". What happened with her that was a cause for concern?

  
"What _about_ Eunomia?" Neferne sighed, though she already seemed to know the answer.

  
"The fact that she had been attacked while in Anima is concerning, to say the least." Ozpin responded, "But the fact that I had to hear this news from (y/n) and not you is, well, also rather worrying."

  
At that, you were even more confused; until you realized what he meant, and why Eunomia's name was so familiar.

  
During your first days as a professor, you had mentioned to Ozpin that a member of Salem's faction had been sent after the summer maiden in Anima, whilst you were in Snowpeak. You had already forgotten the maiden's name at the time you had mentioned the incident to him, but now that you thought about it more thoroughly, you remembered.

  
_Eunomia Bloom was the summer maiden._ That's why her name sounded so familiar.

  
"First of all, I had everything under control." Neferne replied, "Second of all... how did (y/n) know what happened to Eunomia?"

  
"Because it was one of his former colleagues who attacked her." Ozpin stated firmly, staring intently at the headmistress.

  
At that, both Neferne's and Eunomia's eyes widened; though Eunomia was the one to step forward and speak next.

  
"You _worked_   for _Salem?!_ " She screeched, her jade eyes shined with rage as her salamander tail lashed ferociously behind her. You had been somewhat taken aback by her outburst, and looked to Ozpin for help.

  
"Now, there's no need to panic." He said calmly, stepping in front of you defensively. "I understand that his former affiliation with Salem is alarming, but-"

  
"But _nothing!_ " Eunomia spat, glaring at Beacon's headmaster as her eyes glowed bright green from the maiden's powers. "How could you possibly trust him? Who knows what he's done!"

  
You averted your gaze down to the sandstone floor, her intense glare staring holes into your skull.

  
"Eunomia, please." Ozpin spoke once more, keeping his tone calm. "While I don't condone his past misdeeds, I can assure you that he is far from untrustworthy."

  
The summer maiden opened her mouth to speak again, but was interrupted by her headmistress.

  
"That's enough, Eunomia." She said firmly.

  
"But-"

  
"I said that's enough!" Neferne glared harshly at the summer maiden, before sighing and looking to Ozpin. "If Ozpin believes that we can trust him, then I will."

  
Looking from Neferne to you, Eunomia closed her eyes in thought before looking back up at Ozpin; the glow of the maiden's power gone from her eyes.

  
"Fine." She said, crossing her arms. "But if he tries anything while he's here, I can't promise that he'll make it back to Beacon alive."

  
Neferne quietly thought over her words, before looking to Ozpin.

  
"Is there anything else you'd like to talk about?" She asked.

  
"Yes," He answered, nodding his head slightly, "But perhaps it would be better discussed in private."

  
Taking the hint, you stepped out from behind Ozpin and made your way to leave the office. Following Eunomia out the door, Ozpin watched as you walked silently down the hallway before Neferne shut the door, providing the privacy that the headmaster had requested.

  
"You're not very good at hiding it, you know." She said, placing her hands on her hips. Ozpin simply sighed softly and, turning his gaze to the headmistress, he remained silent.

Neferne stared at him for a few moments, choosing her words carefully and deciding to change the subject.

  
"So, why did you really recruit him?" She asked, walking around him and leaning on her birch wood desk. "Is it because of the silver eyes?"

  
"Not quite." Ozpin replied, resting his hands on his cane as he faced Neferne. "While his silver eyes are definitely useful, his semblance is particularly... unique."

  
"So is everyone's semblance." Neferne put in, "What's so special about his?"

  
"He is capable of controlling the creatures of grimm." Ozpin paused briefly as Neferne's eyes widened, before continuing. "However, I don't think he's fully mastered his semblance. While the number of grimm he can control is definitely remarkable, the nature of his silver eyes prevents him from advancing further with his semblance, and vice versa."

  
Neferne closed her eyes, going over the information Ozpin had just relayed to her.

  
"So you're saying that his semblance prevents his from mastering his silver eyes, and his silver eyes keeps him from reaching the full potential behind his semblance."

  
"Precisely."

  
Neferne smiled bitterly, shaking her head at the contrast between your abilities.

  
"How ironic that he was born with a gift that impedes so greatly upon his own natural skill..."

  
"Well, he wasn't exactly born with silver eyes." Ozpin stated, shifting his weight from one leg to the other as Neferne looked up at him in confusion.

  
"How...?" She mumbled, unable to finish her sentence. Luckily she didn't have to, as Ozpin answered her question nonetheless.

  
"Salem has managed to create a parasitic grimm that allows one to steal a significant trait from another. Silver eyes, semblance, aura... magic..." He trailed off, staring intently into Neferne's eyes.

  
"She could steal the maiden's powers..." She muttered in awe. "But if she knew about (y/n)'s semblance, why hinder him with silver eyes?"

  
"Because she's well aware of what would happen if he were to fully master his ability."

  
Neferne's eyes widened when she realized what he was implying. She remained silent for a few moments, processing the possibility.

  
"He could overthrow her and become the new leader of the grimm..." She spoke softly, "But now that he has silver eyes, that potential is gone. He's stuck at a stalemate with himself, he won't ever be able to improve upon either of his abilities."

  
"Well, I believe that with a little help, he'll come to master both." He said, "But the process will definitely take time, patience, cooperation," He leaned forward slightly, "And communication.

  
"You haven't exactly been keeping in touch, Neferne." Ozpin sighed.

  
"So is this the real reason you came to visit?" She inquired, going along with the sudden change in topic "To lecture me on communication issues?"

  
"Eunomia was attacked, and Salem now knows who the summer maiden is." Ozpin said, standing up straight. "This is vital information that should not be withheld; from myself, or the counsel."

  
"And recruiting a member of Salem's Faction _is?"_  Neferne retorted. She glared at him for a moment, before the look in his eyes told her everything. "You know that if they ever found out about his past and what he's done, they'll want him dead, right?"

  
"That's why they can't know. It will cause a panic." Ozpin stated.

  
"How did you even manage to get him into Beacon as a teacher? The council has to approve of his transcripts, do a background check..." She trailed off before coming to a realization. "...You lied on his transcripts and made false records of him, didn't you?"

  
"I suppose that I may have pulled a few strings here and there." He said, a knowing smirk on his face. Neferne sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose, exasperated at the old wizard's antics.

  
"You are in _so_ much trouble if you're found out." She said, looking back up at him.

  
"Maybe so," Ozpin replied, turning around and making his way to the door. "But until then, I believe that it would be in our best interest to enjoy ourselves. It _is_ the Vytal Festival, after all."

  
And with that, Ozpin took his leave to make his way to the fairground.


	24. Bright Festivities

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With very little to do, you decided to spend the day at the fairgrounds.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a rather uneventful chapter, unfortunately. Bright side though, there will be a fight scene in the next chapter! (Also I haven't proof-read this yet so sorry for any grammar mistakes)

It was quite busy at the fairgrounds during the intermission between tournament fights. Everywhere you looked, there were vendors with large crowds of people surrounding them as they observed the available wares. You were currently sat calmly on one of the many benches in the area, silently watching the excitement from your place of comfort. Suddenly a feminine voice spoke up from beside you unexpectedly. Blinking, you looked up to see Eunomia standing by the empty spot on the bench beside you. She appeared much more calm since you last saw her the day you had first met.

  
"Is this seat taken?" She asked, gesturing to the vacant seat beside you. Shaking your head, she took that as her invitation to sit down and watch the crowd along with you in comfortable silence. Neither of you said a word as you listened to the ambiance of people talking and chatting enthusiastically with friends and strangers alike.

  
The quiet moment only lasted a minute however, as Eunomia finally spoke up.

  
"I'm sorry about earlier..." She said, wrapping her salamander tail around her waist and resting it on her lap. "I shouldn't have blown up at you like that. I've just... been a bit on edge since that kidnapping attempt in Anima."

  
"It's alright," You replied, smiling slightly. "I probably would've done the same thing in your situation."

  
She smiled back at you before turning her gaze back to watch the crowded fairground in front of you two. The silence between you resumed and remained for all of thirty seconds before the summer maiden broke it once again.

  
"So..." She began hesitantly, "What was it like?"

  
"Hm?" You turned and looked at her quizzically, waiting for her to elaborate on her question.

  
"What was it like working for Salem...?" She asked bluntly.

  
You fell into an uncomfortable silence as you pondered over your words. What could you say to that? How could you possibly answer her question? For years you had worked as a weapon for the root of all evil in Remnant, following her commands and enduring the torture she put you through. It was the first time anyone had asked you this question, and it proved to be tough to answer.

  
"Well..." You started, "It definitely wasn't the most pleasant experience. I did a lot of things that I'm not particularly proud of, but I didn't exactly have a choice."

  
Both of you fell quiet at that. You were hoping she would leave it at that, and cease questioning you on your previous affiliation. It wasn't something you liked to think about, much less talk about; you relived everything enough in your nightmares. Luckily she didn't ask anything else, taking the hint that you preferred not to speak of your past.

  
Within the crowd, you could just barely see the figures of team STRQ as Summer caught sight of you. She grinned wide and waved at you with great enthusiasm, undoubtedly thrilled to see you once more. You waved back, watching as the rest of her team dragged her away to look at one of the many vendors, despite her obvious desire to approach you instead. You simply smiled as they walked away, vanishing into the horde of people.

  
You were eager to see how well team STRQ would fight once it was their turn in the doubles round. They passed the four-man qualifiers easily, and you weren't surprised when you heard that the Branwen twins had been selected to represent them in the next round. The two siblings practically read each other's mind, fighting side by side in perfect sync. There wasn't a doubt in your mind that they would advance further into the singles round.

  
Having caught the team that left your line of sight, Eunomia spoke up.

  
"Wasn't that the team from Beacon that took down team FRST in less than seven minutes?" She asked.

  
"Yeah," You nodded, "They're the best in their year."

  
"What year are they?" She inquired.

  
"Year one," You answered, "But you'd never know just by looking at them."

  
"No kidding..." She replied, "I figured they were finishing up their second year at least."

  
You smiled slightly, a small sense of pride for your students rising in your chest. You cared deeply for the team, and were excited to see them grow and learn more about the world around them.

  
Your thoughts turned dark, however, once you remembered what they were getting themselves into. They already knew too much to go back to living as ordinary huntsmen and huntresses; they were burdened by the knowledge of a much greater evil unknown to the world of Remnant.

  
You were interrupted from your thoughts as Eunomia stood up, her tail curling as she stretched.

  
"Well, I'll see you around." She said, waving as she bid farewell.

  
You waved back, saying your goodbyes and watching her disappear into the crowd. As much as you would have liked to get up and join in the festivities, you just couldn't seem to as a sudden emptiness began to eat away at your stomach. You ended up sitting their for hours, eyes staring aimlessly at the numerous vendors as the sun slowly set beyond the sandy horizon.

  
The crowd slowly dispersed as vendors began closing shop, ready to turn in for the night. The shattered moon rose into the darkened sky, accompanied by several stars. You paid little to no attention to this however, as you kept your eyes trained of the empty space in front of you. You likely would have remained there all night, had Ozpin not approached you.

  
Funny how he always seemed to show up at just the right time.

  
"It's a lovely night." He said, sitting beside you as the cool night breeze ruffled your (colour) hair.

  
"Yeah..." You murmured, still somewhat out of it. Taking a deep breath, you finally grounded yourself and directed your attention to Ozpin.

  
"Are you alright?" He asked, "You seem rather... _unfocused_ as of late."

  
Blinking and shaking your head slightly to clear your mind, you stood up and stretched. You had been sitting on that bench for hours doing nothing, and it felt good to get the blood flowing to your legs again.

  
"I'm not quite sure, to be honest." You finally answered, turning around to see that he had also stood up despite having only sat down a minute ago. He smiled softly at you, dropping the topic and resting his right hand on his cane before leading you on your late night walk.

  
You hadn't been to Vacuo often, and as such, you were happy knowing that Ozpin was familiar with the place. If it weren't for him leading you around, you surely would have gotten lost within ten minutes.

  
As usual, the majority of your walk was quiet, save for the occasional small talk here and there. It was far from awkward or tense, as you were both quite comfortable with each other. You enjoyed simply being around him, his soothing aura never ceased to calm your nerves if you were ever distressed.

  
His eyes in particular intrigued you, and you often found yourself staring into them even if you didn't intend to. They were warm and beautiful in ways you couldn't describe, and conveyed hidden emotions that he refrained from speaking or acting upon. People often say that one's eyes are a window to their soul, and that was something that you could definitely agree with. So much could be said without speaking a single word.

  
Soon enough, you found yourselves at your temporary dorm rooms - which had been reserved for visiting teachers. Luckily they were right across from each other, so if either of you needed anything, you wouldn't have to go far to see to each other.

  
You said your good night's before retreating into your respective rooms, changing into your night clothes and lying in your bed. It was late, the clock on your scroll showed the time of 11:56.

  
Despite the constant tossing and turning, however, you just couldn't seem to get the precious sleep you so desperately needed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Team FRST is "frost", by the way.


	25. New Challengers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Team STRQ sends the Branwen twins to compete in the doubles round, where they face off against a difficult foe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm working on drawing the original characters' designs - they should be posted on my tumblr before the next chapter ^^

"Next up, we have Raven and Qrow Branwen of Beacon, verses... Robin Flyte and Sylvia Nayad of Atlas!"

  
You perked up when the Branwen twins' names were called, leaning forward in your seat slightly. As the landscape was being randomly selected, Raven rested her hand on the hilt of her blade and Qrow readied his sword. Robin clenched their fists as sharp blades extended from their gauntlets over the back of their hands; if you looked closely, you could faintly see a small single gun barrel mounted on the wrist above the blade. Upon noticing that her partner revealed their weapon, Sylvia retrieved what appeared to be a mechanical lance doubling as a rifle - a silver shield was set on her right forearm as well, which had been attached in a compact manner on her forearm.

  
The four terrains were then set - plains, mountain, geyser field, and frozen tundra landscapes rose to the stage. Once the biomes were set and secure, the match began.

  
Raven cast a glance at her brother who immediately took the lead, charging forward to get within range of their opponents. Robin was the one to meet him, bringing one bladed gauntlet up to block Qrow's overhead swing before swing the other to slash at him. Qrow jumped up, Robin's blade grazing against his shoe as he flipped and landed behind the Atlas student. Turning around just in time, Qrow brought his weapon up as Robin's blade scraped against the broad side of Harbinger.

  
Meanwhile, Raven found herself quite busy with Sylvia. The Atlas student proved tougher than she had anticipated, attacking with quick and powerful swings. With Sylvia's higher defense and longer range, it was clear that the Branwen sister was at a disadvantage. Not that it would stop her, though.

  
Blocking an overhead swing with her black bade, Raven kept her palm on the back of her blade and pushed up to keep Sylvia's lance from harming her. The ground beneath her had cracked slightly from the initial blow, with the cracks growing due to the extended pressure. Before Raven could react, Sylvia lifted her right knee and sent her flying back into the volcanic landscape behind her.

  
Raven tumbled into the ground before regaining her footing and flipping back, landing atop a scorched boulder. Silvia made no move to follow; instead, she altered her lance's structure slightly to reveal more of the rifle components. Bringing the mechanical rifle up and staring through the sights, her golden eyes glowed as she squeezed the trigger.

  
Eyes widening, Raven quickly jumped to the side as the fired shot landed on her bicep. If she hadn't moved in time, it would have hit her chest and made it that much more difficult for her aura to heal. She immediately took cover, crouching behind the boulder she had previously been standing on and listened as a shot gazed the stone where she had been not a second before.

  
She went through her unused blades, exchanging the black one she had equipped with a white air-based blade. Sighing, she took a brief moment to examine her surroundings. In front of her was a large collection of volcanic rock, the mountain range of the next biome stood tall at her left, and a few magma geysers were located a few meters away to her right.

  
Before she could make a move, the boulder her back was rested against split in half as Sylvia sliced through it with her lance. Raven got to her feet and made a beeline for the magma geysers - one in particular rumbled, indicating that it was going to erupt.

  
Raven stopped as soon as she was on the opposite side of the geyser and turned, facing Sylvia who gave chase. Luckily for Raven, she didn't seem to notice the soft rumbling coming from the geyser.

  
Readying her blade and bracing herself, the geyser erupted before Sylvia could reach Raven. Activating the dust her blade, she redirected the molten rock toward her opponent. Sylvia managed bring her shield up just in time, preventing herself from being scorched by the onslaught of lava.

  
The moment the geyser ceased, Raven leaped at Sylvia, drawing a maroon blade and striking as soon as she lowered her shield. The Branwen sister stabbed her sword into her opponent's left shoulder, aiming for the gap in her armour. Sylvia shouted, pushing Raven back with her shield and stumbling back to put some distance between them. The wounded area on her shoulder flickered dark pink as she healed her new wound; the screens surrounding the stadium indicating that her aura was dangerously nearing the red zone.

  
Raven wasn't doing too well, either. Her aura reserve was already depleted to the halfway point. If she didn't end this soon, then it was likely that she wouldn't make it through this round.

  
Qrow, on the other hand, was faring better than his sister - if only by a little bit. He had found himself in the grassy plains, playing a more dangerous version of hide-and-seek with Robin. He crept low among the tall grass, listening carefully for any signs of his opponent.

  
Soon, he heard a low "thump" a little ways behind him. With quick reflexes, he turned around and utilized the gun on his sword, shooting at where he heard the noise.

Unfortunately for him, that wasn't where Robin had been.

  
The Atlas student jumped him when his back was turned, slashing him with their bladed gauntlet. Qrow let out a pained cry, stumbling forward and turning to face Robin. The two stared each other down as Qrow recovered, his wound slowly healing thanks to his aura. The moment he was fully healed, he rushed forward and slashed at the opposing student. Unfortunately for Robin, Qrow's semblance seemed to kick in, causing their heel to catch on a rock and fumble backwards.

  
Taking advantage of this, Qrow swept his foot beneath Robin, kicking their feet out from under them. Qrow then a powerful blow with the back of his blade before they could hit the ground; sending them flying out of bounds as their chocolate brown aura flickered across their body.

  
Qrow took a brief moment to catch his breath, listening to the buzzer indicate that Robin was out before glancing up at one of the several screens in the stadium. It appeared as though Raven and Sylvia were at a stalemate, as both of their aura's were extremely close to the red.

  
Exiting the plains biome, he looked around at the surrounding landscapes to find the two huntresses in the geyser field, with Raven stuck on defense. Running towards to two, he watched as the occasional geyser erupted scalding hot water nearby. An idea formed in the back of his mind, and when he met his sister's gaze, she seemed to the thinking the same thing.

  
Raven managed to land a heavy kick on Sylvia, causing her to stumble back into a soon-to-erupt geyser. She had no time to move as the boiling water shot up out of the ground, sending her up into the air and landing in the mountain range. Her deep pink aura flickered over her body, Qrow and Raven smiling at each other as they were about to celebrate their apparent victory.

  
They stopped before they could relax, however, as they didn't hear the buzzer go off. Instead, the bar indicating Sylvia's aura went back up to the green as a pink light shone from where Sylvia had landed.

  
"Now, this is interesting!" One announcer said over the mic, before the voice of the second announcer spoke up.

  
"It seems that Miss Nayad has finally activated her semblance!" The voice said excitedly, "Her semblance is an interesting one, as it can only be used when her aura reserve is low. However, her semblance allows her to replenish her aura completely once a day!"

  
"Great..." Qrow groaned, his shoulders slouching as Sylvia stood atop the peak of the mountain, eyes glowing gold as her aura flickered across her body.

  
"Well that's hardly fair..." Raven muttered, cycling through her coloured blades before drawing one comprised of yellow lightning dust. "You'll probably want your scythe for this one."

  
Qrow nodded as a shot sounded, a bullet grazing his right cheek.

  
"We need to move!" He said, before the both of them burst into a zig-zag sprint towards their opponent. Multiple rounds could be heard as Sylvia stood her ground, shooting with precision. Unfortunately for her, none of her shots hit. They would always either graze their intended target, or end up deflected by their weapons.

  
Once Qrow was sure that Sylvia's focus was on his sister, he took the opportunity to activate the mechanisms in his weapon, allowing him to utilize his scythe. Once her focus was back on him, Raven activated the lightning dust and swung her sword, releasing the latch of her blade and throwing it at Sylvia while she was distracted.

  
She caught sight of the blade just in time to dodge the blade. However, as it grazed her arm, it sent an electric current surging through her body. Letting out a pained cry, she fell to her knees as the energy coursed through her. This opening allowed Qrow and Raven to make more distance without fear of being shot. They managed to reach the base of the mountain once Sylvia finally recovered.

  
Finding no point in delaying the inevitable, Sylvia readied her lance and jumped down to meet the Branwen twins. Despite being outnumbered, she held her own against them quite well.

  
The three exchanged several blows until Raven finally decided to fall back and let her brother stand against Sylvia, as she had enough of falling victim to his semblance. Instead, she stood further up the mountain, watching Qrow face off against the Atlas student. He fought well on his own, consistently blocking her attacks and retaliating when possible. He kept on the defense, but did what he could to weaken Sylvia.

  
Raven looked around her, noticing a rather large rock nearby. She sighed before walking toward it, picking it up to find that it was rather heavy and somewhat difficult to carry.

  
Eventually, Qrow was knocked back into the tundra biome located nearby. Sylvia then turned to look up at where she had last seen Raven, only for a large rock to collide with her head. She fell to the ground, her vision faded to black as the buzzer sounded and the Branwen twins were announced as the winners of the doubles round.

  
Robin made their way over to their unconscious teammate, picking her up before turning to Raven.

  
"That was a real good fight you two out up," They smiled as Qrow approached, "Not many people can take down Sylvia... You two are really something else."

  
"Well, it definitely wasn't easy." Qrow replied, watching as the rest of team STRQ and team SLVR made their way to help them.

  
Summer practically threw herself at Raven, hugging her tightly and squealing with delight. Taiyang placed a hand on Qrow's shoulder congratulating him while Verde and Lilith helped Robin with Sylvia.

  
"Hey, you guys were really good!" Summer said, facing Robin as soon as she ceased smothering Raven.

  
"Thanks," Robin smiled, leaning on Lilith as Verde took the task of carrying their unconscious leader. "For first years, you guys are pretty good yourselves."

  
"Maybe when Sylv's feeling better we can all get together," Verde spoke up, "Grab something to eat, or something."

  
Before anyone could protest, Taiyang answered for team STRQ.

  
"Of course," He grinned, "That sounds like a good plan."

  
Soon, a couple of paramedics came forward with a stretcher, and offered to take Sylvia from Verde. Once she was secure on the stretcher, the two teams followed the medics away from the center of the stadium and remained in the infirmary as the competing students were seen to for any injuries.

  
Summer and Taiyang chatted idly with Verde and Lilith as they waited for their teammates to come back from their check-ups. They quieted down however, as they heard a knock at the door. The infirmary door opened to reveal you, quietly entering and closing the door behind you.

  
"Hey," you smiled softly at the four students in front of you, "How's everyone doing?"

  
"Good," Everyone said unanimously.

  
"I'm guessing the others are being seen to?" You asked, the four students nodding in response. "Is Miss Nayad doing well? She took... quite the hit."

  
"Yeah, she'll be alright." Lilith said, giggling slightly. "She's had worse."

  
Before you could say anything else, the Branwen twins came back from their check-up.

  
"Was it really necessary to flirt with the nurse?!" Raven scolded her brother, stopping when her eyes landed on you. "Oh, hello Professor. What brings you here?"

  
"Professor Bloom asked me to check up on the combatants, and ensure that no permanent damage has been done to Miss Nayad." You answered. Raven shifted her weight awkwardly when Sylvia was mentioned.

  
"Congratulations, by the way," You added, "I'll admit, had my doubts. But you two really pulled through; good job."

  
"Thanks," Qrow responded, sitting down beside the rest of his team.

  
Looking over at a clock on the wall, you then turned to leave.

  
"Anyway, I should let Professor Bloom know that Miss Nayad is alright," Opening the door, you took your leave. "Good luck in the next round."

  
Closing the door as you left the infirmary, you walked down the hallway to look for Eunomia. Team STRQ's recent victory remained in the back of your mind as you wandered through the stadium. Perhaps Ozpin was right to take an interest in the young team - they showed great promise.


	26. Descent Into Darkness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> During the semi-finals, you begin to get the feeling that something isn't right.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me? Actually updating this old thing? It's more likely than you think.

The stadium was packed as countless people screamed and cheered for the participants of the Vytal Festival Tournament. The Singles round was just beginning, and the energy of the crowd could rival that of the competing students.

  
Despite the intense positivity and enthusiasm surrounding you, you couldn't help but feel like something was amiss. Ozpin, who was seated beside you, seemed to notice and placed a hand over yours in an attempt to comfort you.

  
"Is there something wrong?" He asked, keeping his voice low enough so only you could hear, but loud enough to be heard over the audience.

  
"Yeah, I just-" You cut yourself off when the announcer's voice spoke up over the roaring crowd.

  
"And now, for our first match in the singles round, we have... Rowena Rosewood verses Coppur Church!"

  
Taking a deep breath, you stood from your seat.

  
"I just need to stretch my legs a bit." You said, squeezing between the seats to the aisle and leaving the main arena.

  
It wasn't long before you ended up outside on the balcony overlooking the kingdom. The sun was slowly dipping below the horizon, with the last few lights of day gradually fading away. Unfortunately, the warm sunset and cool evening air did nothing to calm the uneasy feeling growing in the pit of your stomach.

  
The feeling you had was strange, yet somewhat... familiar. It was similar to what you felt from the dormant grimm dragon beneath the mountain near Vale, but stronger and more active. Whatever it was that was happening, it couldn't be good.

  
Sighing, you walked around the balcony surrounding the arena. You knew something wasn't right, but you couldn't let yourself panic just because you had a bad feeling. Closing your eyes as you walked, you listened intently to your surroundings. You could hear the clashing of weapons and screams of excitement from the crowd from within the arena, along with the howling wind from outside.

  
Among the wind, however, you heard the cry of a crow. Opening your eyes, you looked around and saw the aforementioned bird fly by, landing on the floor near some spilled popcorn. That's... odd. Crows don't live in the desert, it's not suited for them.

  
Before you could further question the strange appearance of the bird, a griffon's distant cry caught your attention. Looking up at the surrounding skies, you found that it was empty. The griffon's faint cry sounded again, and this time you could determine that it was coming from the east. No wonder you couldn't see it - you were currently positioned westernmost of the arena.

  
Turning around, you re-entered the stadium to sprint through several maintenance halls towards the east entrance. You could have just ran around on the balcony, but it would be quicker this way.

  
The moment you left the main arena and entered the east observation deck, you were hit with an intense wave of negativity emanating from a horde of grimm charging for the kingdom from the distance. All the grimm were nearly invisible with the naked eye, each one masked in the darkness of the oncoming night. But among the griffons, nevermores, creeps, and numerous other beasts, you could see it. A grimm bigger than anything you had ever seen before - a creature that dwarfed the grimm dragons you've encountered in the past.

  
And standing on it's back was none other than the leader of the grimm herself.

  
You froze as your silver eyes met crimson, your feet unable to move as the army of grimm advanced. You screamed at yourself to move, to call Ozpin and evacuate the stadium, to prepare for battle and defend Vacuo. But no matter how hard you tried, you remained still, frozen in fear.

  
"Professor (y/n)!"

  
Upon hearing the familiar voice, you snapped out of your trance and looked to it's source. Of course, who else would it be but Summer Rose?

  
"Miss Rose-" You started, but she cut you off and spoke in a frantic tone.

  
"Professor, I had a vision- it's Salem, she's gonna attack the kingdom! I've been looking for you for so long, I-"

  
"Miss Rose," You spoke calmly, placing a hand on her shoulder and keeping her from looking at the oncoming army of grimm. "I need you to go find Professor Ozpin, and tell him about your vision. Tell him they're attacking from the east, and to evacuate the stadium immediately."

  
Upon hearing your words, Summer's silver eyes widened in fear as she turned to look into the distance. Before she could see the invading grimm creatures, you brought your palm up and gently cupped her face with your hand, and turned her head to face you.

  
"Summer... Please."

  
You knew that she knew that this wouldn't end well. That countless lives were going to be lost, and that it was unlikely for you - _especially_ you - to survive. But you weren't going to let Summer see just how scared you were.

  
So you kept your eyes soft, and your voice unusually gentle. That alone told the young huntress everything.

  
But she said nothing, and simply nodded before turning away and disappearing back into the stadium. You stared at her as she left, before sighing and retrieving your scroll. Bringing up Neferne's contact, you could only hope that she answered your call.

  
You stood on the edge of the balcony as you brought your scroll up to your ear, watching as the grimm came closer and closer. They were almost at the edge of the kingdom defenses now, and there was no way that they would hold up against that many grimm.

  
"(y/n)? What is it?" Neferne's voice answered through the speaker of your scroll.

  
"There's a huge army of grimm about to attack the kingdom from the east," You stated, not bothering to sugarcoat anything.

  
"Wait, what?!" She responded in alarm, "What's their current position? What are their numbers? How hasn't anyone seen them?"

  
"I estimate a good few thousand..." You replied, "There's one enormous grimm in particular that I'm worried about, not to mention the fact that Salem has decided to oversee this attack herself."

  
"Oh, gods..." You could hear the fear in her voice as she spoke again, struggling to remain calm. "Alright, I'll organise an evacuation to the school with all available huntsmen on the front lines. Is there any chance you can buy us some time with those silver eyes of yours?"

  
Before you could answer, you heard the blaring siren of the arena go off, announcing an incoming grimm attack. At that, numerous screams of terror erupted from the stadium, as several nevermores flew past the preoccupied kingdom defense toward the stadium.

  
"I'll do what I can..." You said, ending the call and pocketing your scroll before leaping off the balcony.

  
Closing your eyes and steadying your breathing, you focused your semblance onto one nearby nevermore. It was extremely difficult to override Salem's control over the creature, but with much luck and great focus, you managed to take control of it yourself.

  
Landing on its back, you gripped its jet black feathers tightly as you positioned yourself on the nape of its neck, flying around the stadium to draw the attention of all other grimm creatures. Reaching back to draw your weapon, you readied yourself to utilise your silver eyes.

  
The moment you made an attempt to use them, however, the nevermore you rode upon let out a loud screech as you lost control of it. The creature flew toward the stadium, where several other nevermores were positioned, chipping away at the arena's defense. Growling in frustration, you allowed the nevermore to reach the arena before standing and stabbing the creature's skull with your weapon. The nevermore evaporated away, and you landed on top of the stadium's force field with three other nevermores, who's attention was immediately directed toward you.

  
Raising our weapon, you listened to the screams and roars from the distance. Your silver eyes glowed slightly as you faced off against the grimm that you couldn't control.

  
The battle for Vacuo has just begun.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the inactivity on this fic lately, I just haven't really been inspired to write for this. Updates will probably be few and far between, around once a month at most.


	27. Huntsmen and Grimm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So begins the battle for Vacuo.

The three nevermore surrounding you were easily dispatched with a few swift swings of your weapon. It was somewhat difficult, as the force field underneath your feet was smooth and slippery, giving you little support. Despite the difficulty, however, you managed to fight on.

  
The grimm absolutely decimated the kingdom defenses, allowing more and more to fly in toward the stadium. You remained standing defiantly atop the arena, watching them draw closer through the darkened sky. You could still hear the frightened voices and panicked cries of the students and civilians below as they fled the arena.

  
Amity Colosseum's defenses were limited, and the force field protecting the arena was already severely damaged. If it were breached completely, no one would survive...

  
The situation wasn't looking very good.

  
Utilising your silver eyes, you vapourised several griffons before they could land. But with each grimm slain, another ten took its place.

  
No matter, you stood your ground to defend the arena, refusing to allow any of the creatures through and wreak havoc on the hundreds of people still stuck inside.

  
The sound of airships approaching could be heard as you jumped toward a nearby flock of griffons mid-air, killing as many as you could in the skies before a horde flew past and dove down toward the arena. Unable to reach them in time, you once again resorted to using your silver eyes, watching as the flock disintegrated into a thick cloud of black smoke.

  
Unfortunately, you were already nearing your limit as you felt a stabbing pain form in the front your skull. As great as your silver eyes were, you could only use them so much before it became painful.

  
And you'd most definitely need them for later, in what would surely be your final battle.

  
As you returned to your position on the stadium's force field, you looked down into the arena. It was nearly empty, and almost everyone was either on an airship bound for the academy or waiting for one on the balcony.

  
The piercing cry of a nevermore caused you to snap your head up, and look on in dismay as Salem commanded hundreds of flying grimm to attack the colosseum. You knew that you shouldn't overuse your silver eyes, and yet...

  
Before you could even begin to unleash the energy lying withing your eyes, you watched as many of them were shot out of the sky. Looking down over the edge toward the balcony, you saw numerous huntsmen and students alike brandishing their ranged weapons, all aimed at the oncoming onslaught of grimm. Many nevermore fell, vanishing into smoke before they could hit the sandy grounds below.

  
Jumping down from atop the arena, you landed on the balcony below, not far behind the other students and huntsmen. They continued their ranged attacks, firing a multitude of dust ammunition. Grimm plummeted to the ground, one after the other. Wings would freeze, feathers would burn, and some simply succumbed to the overwhelming pain of repeated bullets and arrows.

  
Before you could step in and help, you felt your scroll buzz in your pocket. Grabbing it, you found that it was Ozpin who was calling.

  
"Ozpin, what-"

  
"Where are you?" He said, interrupting you before you could finish.

  
"I'm still at the colosseum," You answered, "There are still people who haven't made it to the kingdom, and I'm not leaving until everyone's evacuated."

  
"The kingdom is lost," Ozpin replied, his voice sounding uncharacteristically distressed. "Everyone needs to fall back to the school _immediately_. Neferne and I have organised a stronghold here, but we'll need every huntsman who is able to defend it."

  
_The kingdom had already fallen...?_

  
Looking over the edge of Amity Colosseum, you stared down at the desert kingdom - or what was left of it, at least. Countless buildings had crumbled to the ground, and anything that was even remotely flammable was already up in flames. The sirens from the kingdom defense could barely be heard over the roars of grimm and the terrified shrieks of the civilians below.

  
However, all the grimm inside the kingdom were small. Beowolves, ursi, creeps... even the deathstalkers and king taijitu were tiny in comparison of that _one_ _grimm._

  
Turning your gaze to the east, you found that the enormous serpentine grimm creature remained on the outskirts of the city, watching as he army of smaller grimm laid waste to the kingdom.

  
But why? You were sure that, if she wanted to, she could destroy the kingdom and the academy within seconds - if she wanted to. So why wait? Why not use that giant creature to claim an instant victory?

  
Raising your scroll to your ear, your spoke in a frighteningly calm voice.

  
"I won't make it to the academy, Oz."

  
As you remained standing, you watched as the last people in the area boarded the last airships, and took off to Shade Academy. None of the airborne grimm made a move to attack the airships; instead, they circled the area around you.

  
It was obvious, really.

  
"(y/n), we need you here now." Ozpin said, "Whatever it is that you're thinking of doing, don't."

  
Dropping your scroll to the ground, you stepped forward, allowing yourself to fall down from the balcony. You could faintly hear his voice from your discarded scroll, but you paid it no mind as you landed on the back of a griffon. Digging your blade into it's back to keep yourself steady, you focused all of your energy into commanding the single grimm.

  
In the distance, a pair of gleaming crimson eyes watched as you rode the grimm creature away from the stadium. Navigating through the skies and avoiding any attacking opponents, you flew through the air with experience precision.

  
Salem remained unmoving, standing atop her creation elegantly as she listened to the carnage below. Roaring flames danced high in the sky, mingling perfectly with the horrific screams of humans and fierce cries of grimm.

  
The entire time, she was waiting.


	28. Face Reality

Smoke rose high into the night sky as fire burned and creatures of grimm raided the kingdom. Students and huntsmen alike fought tooth and claw to protect the remaining civilians who had not yet made it to the academy.

 

Ozpin swiftly cleared out a horde of griffons, scroll in hand with your contact open.

 

“(y/n)? _(y/n)!_ ”  He practically yelled into his scroll, praying to the gods that you weren’t doing what he thought you were doing.

 

Upon hearing the cry of a nevermore, he closed his scroll and leapt into the air as it flew by. Landing on its back, he plunged his cane into the nape of its neck, sending a coursing wave of energy through its body. The grimm creature let out another cry, losing altitude as it plummeted and evaporated into black smoke.

 

Jumping off what was left of the nevermore, Ozpin landed gracefully onto the crumbling sandstone pavement. As he stood up, Neferne and Eunomia were quick to come to his side.

 

“Have the academy’s defenses been activated yet?” He asked, glancing behind the two at the civilians filing into the school’s entrance, escorted by teachers and younger students.

 

“Yes, but they won’t hold for long,” Neferne answered, “Where’s (y/n)? We’ll need him here to help defend the academy.”

 

Ozpin fell silent at the headmistress’s question, looking off into the distance toward the enormous grimm creature located just outside the kingdom. He knew what you were doing, and he didn’t need to say a thing to Neferne or Eunomia for them to understand.

 

“He went after that thing…?” Eunomia muttered, following Ozpin’s gaze. Her black-and-green tail lashed as she looked from the giant grimm and Ozpin.

 

“It’s safe to assume that he did, yes.” He nodded, readying his cane. Before he could make to move, Neferne placed a hand on his shoulder to stop him.

 

“I know you want to go and help him, Oz,” She stated firmly, staring intently at the wizard, “But we need you here to defend the academy.”

 

Ozpin fell silent at that, torn between protecting the school or saving you. Knowing the current stakes at hand, Ozpin sighed softly and nodded, turning toward the two huntresses. Resting his hands on his cane, he stood up straight and began putting together a more concrete plan.

 

“Both of you, go to the tower,” He said, taking a moment to glance over at Vacuo’s CCT Tower, “Under no circumstances are you to leave or let it fall.”

 

Neferne and Eunomia nodded, before running off to protect the tower. Ozpin then reaching into his pocket, retrieving a vial of powdered ice dust. It wasn’t a lot, but he’d make it work.

 

As the grimm creatures chipped away at the school’s defense system, Ozpin opened the vial of dust and activated it with his aura.

 

Normally, he wouldn’t utilise his magic for combat purposes. However, times were desperate, and countless lives were at stake. Harnessing a minimal amount of his magical powers, he enhanced the effects of the ice dust, and created an enormous wall of ice that surrounded both the school and the CCT Tower. Just a bit of insurance for when the creatures of grimm finally broke through the main defense system.

 

Taking a deep breath, he then put a small enchantment on the wall; with this magic, the ice wall would instantly freeze any grimm that touched it.

 

Sighing, Ozpin then turned and entered the school. With the headmistress and school counselor both off defending the CCT Tower, that left him to calm the remaining people and ensure their safety. Limping slightly as he made his way through the crowd of worried and frightened survivors, he was stopped by one team in particular.

 

“Professor Ozpin!”

 

Pausing, Ozpin turned to face the one who addressed him, to reveal that it was none other than Summer Rose, with the rest of Team STRQ on her heels. Her concerned silver eyes searched his own for an answer to her unspoken question; but when she deemed that answer unsuitable, she finally voiced her concerns.

 

“Did Professor (y/n)… “ She said, hesitating slightly, “Did he make it back?”

 

Ozpin’s silence was answer enough. Her eyes widened in disbelief at her headmaster, stumbling back slightly. Taiyang placed a hand on her should to steady her, and asked if she was okay.

 

“We… We have to go help him,” She stated, turning around to address her team, “If we don’t, then-“

 

“You’re not going anywhere.” Ozpin said, interrupting Summer. Now, it wasn’t often that he would interfere with their plans to save the day –but this was much different. “All students and huntsmen are required to remain here to protect the school and the surviving civilians.”

 

“But-“

 

“I don’t want any arguments, Miss Rose.” He paused for a moment, before lowering his voice into a softer tone, “Your heart is in the right place, but (y/n) is beyond our help. I'm sorry.”

 

She was clearly upset – and understandably so. But he couldn’t allow her to put herself on death’s doorstep to save a dead man.

 

Tears threatened to spill from her glossy silver eyes as she glared at her headmaster. He matched her gaze with a soft stare; though he didn’t show it, she was unknowingly harming him.

 

Summer finally turned and stormed away, her white cloak fluttering behind her as she took her leave. The rest of her team stood back for a moment, watching her walk away. They looked at each other, then looked to Ozpin expectantly.

 

“I suggest you get your rest,” He stated simply, “You’ll need all the strength you can muster to survive tomorrow.”

 

“Will the defenses even hold until then?” Raven asked, placing her hands on her hips. Ozpin took a moment to answer, but responded nonetheless.

 

“We can only hope so.”

 

With that, Ozpin turned and took his leave. He didn’t bother to sugarcoat his words – this was the truth that they all faced. This was what they signed up for when they chose to attend Beacon and become huntsmen and huntresses themselves.

 

This wasn’t a fairy tale.

 

This was a grimm reality.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I haven't been able to watch the new episode of RWBY yet and it's killing me


	29. Last Stand

Soaring brilliantly through the grimm-infested sky upon your griffon, your heart pounded as your drew closer to your target. Any grimm that came between you and Salem were immediately disposed of with a swift blow from your weapon.

 

Finally, when the griffon you rode was close enough, you sliced its head off before leaping from its body and onto the back of the giant grimm serpent. Smaller grimm creatures circled around you and Salem, but none made any move to swoop in or attack.

 

Salem simply stared you down with her dark gaze, remaining silent for a few moments. You kept your weapon at the ready, panting heavily from the strain it took just to get to this point.

 

“So it’s come to this, has it?” Salem spoke in a calm rage, “I gave you power, and you dare to use it against me?”

 

“You never gave me a choice.” You growled, narrowing your silver eyes. You watched her calm façade drop as her expression twisted into one of anger. She raised her hand, summoning several grimm arms from the flesh of the serpent you stood upon, and sent them all forward to grab you and restrain you.

 

Wasting no time, you spun your dust cartridge to ice, allowing the carvings in your blade to glow white as you retaliated and froze each hand that tried to bring you down. As soon as you had an opening, you rushed forward, slicing through any new appendages Salem summoned. Several claws sliced the fabric of your clothes and grazed your skin, but luckily none had managed to do any serious harm.

 

Glancing at Salem once more, you watched as she created more clawed limbs, and commanded them to surround and overwhelm you.

 

You immediately moved to leap into the air and grab hold of one of the flying grimm above, but you found that you couldn’t lift your legs. Looking down in shock, you found that the skin of the grimm serpent that you stood on had become less solid, liquefying and sticking to you to prevent you from moving.

 

Turning your gaze to the oncoming horde of disembodied arms, you took a deep breath and allowed yourself to muster up all the power you had left. Summoning all your strength and energy, your silver eyes began to glow softly before you allowed them to shine brightly and vapourise the threat before you.

 

You could hear the loud roar of the grimm serpent as it moved to avoid the light. Salem screeched out in rage as the cries of the thousands of grimm surrounding you fell silent. Your heart pounded in your chest like a drum, and an intense pain wracked through your head. Finally, the light died down, and you allowed yourself to collapse to your knees. Your vision spun as your head swam, and a loud ringing was all you could hear.

 

Had it not been for that ringing, perhaps you would have heard the growl of frustration. Or, if your vision had been clearer, maybe you would have seen that despite the significant lack of grimm and the stone you now knelt upon, Salem had in fact survived the intense energy of your silver eyes.

 

But no – you were in far too much pain. Your eyes burned as though someone had set them aflame with fire dust. It wasn’t until Salem spoke herself that you realized that you weren’t quite finished yet.

 

“Did you really think that was enough to kill me?” She sneered, wasting no time as she approached you.

 

At those words, you felt your heart drop. Despite the burn in your eyes and the pain in your skull, you looked up in disbelief at Salem, who hadn’t taken as much as a scratch.

 

Willing your aura to numb the pain, you got to your feet just in time as Salem sent a torrent of scorching fire from the palm of her hand. You barely managed to scroll through to your wind dust in time, using it to redirect the flames away from you.

 

“It’s a pity, really,” Salem spoke in a frighteningly calm voice, “How you truly thought that you stood a chance.”

 

You could feel tears well up in your eyes as the searing pain resurfaced. Your aura was low, and you couldn’t afford to waste it.

 

“But it’s not entirely your fault, of course. After all, who was it that led you to believe that you were redeemable? That you were the one to save humanity?”

 

Readying your blade, you threw yourself forward and swung at her. She barely flinched, summoning a grimm black blade in her hand and bringing it up to deflect your attack with little effort.

 

You refused to back down, however, as you swung downward. She was quick to defend, of course; using her own blade to block yours before you brought your foot up and planted it into her abdomen, kicking her back before rushing forward once more.

 

She was quick to recover from the initial blow as she regained her footing and evaded another swing from you. In a split second, she conjured a ball of flame in the palm of her hand. You immediately moved to attack her before she could utilize it, but she managed to duck below your swing and plant her fire-coated hand into the center of your chest.

 

You were sent sprawling backwards as the air was knocked out of your lungs and the heat of fire scorched your flesh. You (colour) aura flickered across your body, unable to heal your newly inflicted injury.

 

Gasping for breath, you lied motionless on the ground. Your arms and legs felt heavy, as though they were being weighed down.

 

Salem’s face soon entered your vision, her gaze harsh and unforgiving as she stared down at your bruised and broken body.

 

You really didn’t want to die. No, not now; not when you finally found a real reason to start living. All your students, all your friends… you didn’t want to leave them behind. You didn’t want to leave Ozpin behind.

 

But this is what you signed up for when you changed allegiances and joined Ozpin. All along you knew, deep down, that this was how it would end.

 

No, you didn’t want to die. But now, as you stared into Salem’s cold crimson eyes, you knew that you didn’t have to die full of regrets. You did the best you could do, you taught your students, you made friends, and you even fell in love along the way.

 

So as Salem sunk her grimm black blade deep into the center of your chest, you found yourself smiling as the life faded from your body.


End file.
